Samir Bhujbal sent to ED custody till February 8

A special court here on Tuesday sent Nationalist Congress Party leader Samir Bhujbal to the custody of Enforcement Directorate till February 8.

The ED had arrested Samir - the nephew of former deputy chief minister Chhagan Bhujbal - late on Monday on various charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

Special Judge P.R. Bhavke sent him to six days ED custody after the agency said that he had failed to appear despite three summons served on him.

The ED further said that it had scrutinized various records, bank documents and learnt about certain hawala transactions involving certain officials of the Mumbai Education Trust, controlled by the Bhujbals.

Earlier on Tuesday, NCP president Sharad Pawar sharply criticized the state government for what he termed "targetting" of the NCP leaders, specifically the Bhujbal family.

Samir's arrest followed a day of searches at nine premises owned by the Bhujbals in Mumbai, following complaints by BJP MP Kirit Somaiya who has been actively seeking to expose their alleged corrupt activities.

Last month, the ED had attached two properties worth Rs.1.10 billion in the Mumbai suburbs, preceded by two cases filed under Economic Case Information Reports against Chhagan Bhujbal, son Pankaj and nephew Samir, last June.

Besides, the Anti-Corruption Bureau has lodged three FIRs against the Bhujbals and other officials in the Maharashtra Sadan (New Delhi) building scam and a plot of land in Kalina, western suburbs of Mumbai, by a SIT under the orders of the Bombay High Court.