Fadnavis wades in, slams Uddhav sarkar on Wadhawans' Covid lockdown jaunt to Mahabaleshwar

BJP leader and former Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday questioned the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government after 23 people from the Wadhawan family, key members are out on bail in connection with the alleged DHFL scam, were allowed to flout the Covid lockdown, with the alleged permission of a top Maharashtra bureaucrat. 

Taking to Twitter, Fadnavis questioned how the Wadhawan family was allowed to spend holidays in Mahabaleshwar despite the lockdown and also hinted that the orders could have come from the government due to which the senior IPS officer and principal secretary of Home Department Amitabh Gupta allowed the family to travel to Mahabaleshwar. The top official has since been put on compulsory leave pending inquiry, by the Maharashtra government.

In another tweet, Fadnavis questioned Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and the state Home Minister Anil Deshmukh asking them to explain why were they allowed to travel to Mahabaleshwar.

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How the incident came to light?

Amid the 21-day nationwide lockdown imposed till April 14, Satara Superintendent of Police (SP) on Thursday confirmed that the Wadhawan's family, promoters of RKW and DHFL, allegedly violated the lockdown. Satara's SP informed Republic Media Network that 23 members of the Wadhawan family traveled to Mahabaleshwar on Thursday. He added that the locals flagged authorities on their arrival and that an investigation has been ordered on how they managed to reach Mahabaleshwar.

This comes at a time when the state is grappling with Coronavirus and has recorded the highest number of COVID-19 positive cases (1324 cases) as compared to the rest of the states. Maharashtra also recorded an alarming spike of 229 cases, highest in a single day, with a total of 97 deaths as of April 9. Taking notice of the violation, Maharashtra government sent special Principal Secretary Amitabh Gupta (who had sanctioned the guarantee letter) on compulsory leave starting Friday. Meanwhile, an FIR has been registered against the DHFL promoters and their families in the Satara district's Wai.

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