Activist allowed to withdraw plea against Devendra Fadnavis’ wife

The Bombay high court on Wednesday allowed a social activist to withdraw his public interest litigation (PIL) seeking an inquiry by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the CBI into the alleged incident of a self-styled godman giving a necklace to CM Davendra Fadnavis’ wife Amruta.

Activist Anil Kokane had also sought the registration of an FIR against Ms Fadnavis and the godman under the ‘Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifices and other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act’.

Advocate Hiten Venegaokar, on behalf of the ED, took preliminary objection on the PIL and said that the ED could investigate a matter only if the police or some other investigating agency had registered an FIR. According to him, in this matter the petitioner did not approach any agency to register an FIR and directly went to the court and, hence, the petition should not be entertained.

Public prosecutor Sandip Shinde, on behalf of the state government, told the court that nothing was mentioned in the petition and no offence was made out, so the petition should be dismissed.

The petition states that on February 9 this year Guruvanand Swamy of Tirupati in South India produced a necklace for Ms Fadnavis out of thin air, allegedly using his tantric powers. “The next day she said the guru was highly qualified and well reputed,” the petition claimed.

Mr Kokane, in this PIL, sought direction to the ED, the CBI and Serious Fraud Investigation Office to conduct inquiry with respect to alleged “religious, political and financial collusion between Ms Fadnavis and the self-styled godman.”

The division bench of Chief Justice D.H. Waghela and Justice M.S. Sonak, while dismissing the petition, asked Mr Kokane to approach the concerned authority with a representation and the bench also granted him relief to approach the court if the authorities did not entertain his complaint.