Fadnavis slams Congress for linking Deputy CM Shinde to Satara drug case

Mumbai, Dec 19 (PTI) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said his deputy Eknath Shinde had no connection with the Satara drug factory case, and the Congress's allegations in this regard were politically motivated.

The attempt to link deputy chief minister Shinde to the drug factory was condemnable, Fadnavis told reporters here, adding that he congratulated the police for busting the racket.

There was no evidence of Shinde's or his family's involvement in the case, averred the chief minister who also holds the Home portfolio.

Earlier, state Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal had claimed that the ownership of the land in Satara district where a mephedrone manufacturing factory was operating was in the name of Shinde's brother. The Mumbai crime branch recently busted the unit.

The matter was very serious and Shinde, who heads the Shiv Sena, must resign, he has demanded. PTI MR KRK