Anil Pawar, the ex-commissioner of Vasai-Virar Municipal Corporation, is among four individuals arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a case of money laundering. Also arrested are Y.S. Reddy of the town planning department, and builders Sitaram Gupta and Arun Gupta. The ED is looking into a network of corruption surrounding 41 illegal structures. The accused will be produced in an ED court, and the agency plans to request custody. Raids by the ED led to the seizure of approximately ₹1.33 crore in cash from individuals connected to Pawar, in addition to property documents and digital evidence. The corruption scheme allegedly involved a cartel including town planning officials, engineers, architects, accountants, and facilitators.
Evidence points to widespread bribery, with rates of up to ₹2025 per square foot for Pawar, while Reddy allegedly received ₹10 per square foot. Based on these figures, it is estimated that Pawar was receiving between ₹2 to 2.5 crore per month, and Reddy was earning up to ₹1 crore monthly.