Sanjay Raut's wife Varsha to appear before ED on Saturday in Patra Chawl scam case

Varsha Raut, wife of incarcerated Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut has been asked to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday, August 6, in connection with the Patra Chawl scam case. Varsha Raut was summoned for questioning at the Ballard State office of ED on Friday, however, she will appear before the agency tomorrow, sources said. 

The summon was made hours after Raut's ED remand was extended by the court in the case. The agency said summons were issued after transactions done on Varsha Raut's account came to light.

'Rs 1.08 crore transferred in Varsha Raut's account from unrelated persons'

During Thursday's hearing on the Shiv Sena leader's custody, the ED said an amount of Rs 1.08 crore was transferred in the account of Varsha Raut from unrelated persons. The Rajya Sabha MP was arrested late Sunday night after hours of the raid at his residence.

The ED has alleged financial irregularities in the redevelopment of the Patra chawl and related financial property transactions involving Varsha Raut and alleged associates. In April, the ED had provisionally attached assets worth over Rs 11.15 crore belonging to Sanjay Raut's wife and two of his associates as part of the investigation.

The attached properties included land held by Pravin M Raut, Sanjay Raut's aide and a former director of Guru Ashish Construction Pvt Ltd, at Palghar and Padgha.

These attached assets also include a flat in Mumbai's Dadar held by Varsha Raut and eight plots at Alibaug's Kihim beach, jointly held by Varsha Raut and Swapna Patkar, wife of Sujit Patkar - a "close associate" of Sanjay Raut, the ED said.

Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut was arrested by the ED last Sunday, after day-long searches at his Mumbai residence, followed by six hours of interrogation. Raut, 60, has alleged he was being targeted by the Centre to weaken the Shiv Sena.