Rs 25,000 crore Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam: Hearing on Anna Hazare’s plea against closure starts

 A court here on Saturday began the hearing on a petition filed by activist Anna Hazare against the closure report filed by Mumbai Police in the alleged Rs 25,000 crore Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank scam. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar was one of the accused named in the case.

The court heard the matter for some time on Saturday and adjourned it to March 15, Hazare’s lawyer said. Besides Hazare, Surinder Arora, the original informant in the case, has also filed a protest petition challenging the police’s decision to close the probe for want of evidence.

The Economic Offences Wing of police had registered the case under IPC sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating), the Prevention of Corruption Act, and Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act.

As per the FIR, the state exchequer suffered losses of Rs 25,000 crore between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2017 due to irregularities in the Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank. Hazare’s petition alleged that the entire investigation was an eyewash.