Is Sachin Vaze Osama, asks Uddhav Thackeray

Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze arrives at the police commissioner’s office in south Mumbai on Wednesday. Pic/PTI

Breaking his silence on the investigation into Thane resident Mansukh Hiran's mysterious death, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday said the Opposition was targeting Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze, named the prime suspect in the case, as if he was Osama bin Laden. The Scorpio SUV, which was found abandoned outside industrialist Mukesh Ambani's residence with explosives inside, was traced to Hiran.

API Sachin Vaze outside the commissioner of police's office in south Mumbai on Wednesday. He is the prime suspect in Hiran's death case

The Opposition wants someone to hang before the probe is complete. This is the Opposition's new way. They engage in character assassination. The investigation is on and it will nail the guilty, " he said after the conclusion of the Budget session on Wednesday. The Opposition has demanded his arrest and suspension.

Earlier in the day, the state government announced Vaze's transfer from the city Crime Branch unit he heads currently. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said he was transferred following the Opposition's threat that the day's business would not be allowed if the officer was not shifted. "We convinced the CM to end the issue so that we can transact legislative business on the last day of the session. The government needs to compromise when public issues like approval for the Budget in the legislature are important," said Pawar.

‘We take all crimes seriously'
Thackeray admitted that Vaze had joined the Shiv Sena a decade ago, but did not renew his membership. "The person who abetted MP Mohan Delkar's suicide was a BJP minister. Is Vaze a leader or a minister?," he asked, telling the media persons that an FIR was lodged in Delkar's suicide after recording the statement of his family. "Unlike the Opposition, we have taken all care before filing an FIR," he said, adding that every crime was taken seriously by his government.

Devendra Fadnavis, Opposition leader

Thackeray said Opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis could be probed, if needed, for procuring a call detail report (CDR) in the Hiran death case. But first the government has asked Fadnavis to submit the CDR, he added.

"If their (Opposition) investigating capabilities are so strong then we don't need all other official agencies. We need to know whether the CDR in possession of the Opposition leader proves his claims," said the CM.

‘Vaze has something on govt'
Responding to Thackeray's statement, Fadnavis said Vaze didn't need a lawyer because the chief minister had become his advocate.

"I think Vaze has something that can shake and bring the Thackeray government down. Even though a strong evidence is available and the police has filed a case of murder, Vaze is being protected. Why is the CM defending Vaze?" asked Fadnavis, adding that the Opposition knows that Vaze wasn't Laden.

He said (former minister) Sanjay Rathod was made to resign because he couldn't harm the government, but Vaze was protected. He questioned the CM over the FIRs in the Hiran and Delkar cases. "The CM is selective. Even Hiran's wife has named a suspect. Why did the government choose to rake up the Delkar case after Vaze's case came up?" he asked.

On the matter of CDR, Fadnavis said he has already challenged the government to probe him. "I will face the probe, but I don't understand why they ask the Opposition for evidence. What do they do?" he asked.

Fadnavis said the Opposition's exposé has put the government on the back foot. "We still want Vaze to be arrested. When we learnt that the government wanted to approve the Budget without debating it, we put a condition that we will allow the business to be conducted only if the officer was transferred," he said.

No to chemical refinery at Nanar
CM Uddhav Thackeray said the chemical refinery, which was proposed to be built at Nanar but later scrapped because of environmental concerns, would be constructed at an alternative site where the locals approve of it. "Not just the money, but the environment is also important. Some people had come to meet me but I told them the same thing," he said. Thackeray's cousin and MNS chief Raj Thackeray has demanded the revival of the refinery at Nanar, and claimed that the NCP boss Sharad Pawar had supported his stand.