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BJP leader Kirit Somaiya. File.
| Photo Credit: PTI
The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police closed the case against Bharatiya Janata Party’s leader Kirit Somaiya and his son Neil in the alleged case of misappropriation of funds to save INS Vikrant, the naval aircraft.
A closure report of the same was submitted by officials of EOW to a court in Mumbai on December 14. It stated that the police did not find any criminality in the case against Mr. Somaiya and his son owing to which a C-Summary (closure) report was filed.
The Somaiyas had filed for pre-arrest bail before the sessions court on April 9 after the Trombay police station registered a criminal case against them on the basis of a complaint by a retired Army personnel Baban Bhosale.
The First Information Report (FIR) was registered under Sections 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code. INS Vikrant was decommissioned in the year 1997, however was sold and scrapped in November 2014. They had started a campaign called “Save INS Vikrant” to raise funds for saving the aircraft from being scrapped and collected more than ₹57 crore and had himself donated only ₹2000.
On April 13, the Bombay High Court had granted interim relief from protection to the duo and had said, “The FIR indicates that allegations are mainly based on media reports. Though there are specific allegations of misappropriation of ₹57 crore, there is no material on record to indicate on what basis the complainant has arrived at said figure.” The court kept extending the protection.
A special prevention of money-laundering court on April 12 had rejected his anticipatory bail of father and son. The pleas had mentioned that the ₹57 crore case is of the year 2013 and is therefore politically motivated. It also states that there is no evidence of his involvement in the case.
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