Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction) chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday alleged that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had ignored his warning about the possible misuse of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Speaking at the launch of Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut’s book ‘Narkatala Swarg’ (Heaven In Hell), Pawar said the Act has been used by the BJP-led government to target opposition leaders through the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Pawar recalled being a part of the UPA cabinet when the proposal to amend the PMLA was brought forward by then-Finance Minister P Chidambaram. “I met and warned Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that it could be misused,” he said.

“After 2014, the BJP government used the same Act to send Chidambaram and many other opposition leaders to jail in fake cases. MP Sanjay Raut and Anil Deshmukh were victims of this Act,” he said.

Pawar emphasised that under the UPA government, although nine opposition leaders were charge-sheeted under PMLA, none were arrested. In contrast, under the current NDA government, 19 leaders from parties such as Congress, AAP, DMK, RJD, TMC and others have been targeted.

Thackeray criticised the present administration, describing it as an “autocratic” regime that had “turned a heaven like India into a hell” through the misuse of central investigative agencies.

The event also saw the presence of Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, renowned lyricist Javed Akhtar, and Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale, who joined Pawar in launching the book chronicling his 101 days in jail in 2022.

Javed Akhtar praised Raut for his “fearless expression,” as he didn’t surrender to pressure.