Rs 25,000 Crore MSCB Case Closed: Major Relief for Sunetra Pawar, Rohit Pawar and 68 Others

In a significant legal development in the long-running Rs 25,000 crore Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam case, a special court in Mumbai has accepted the closure report filed by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW). The decision brings major relief to Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar, MLA Rohit Pawar, and 68 others named in the case.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had registered a money laundering case based on the original FIR filed by Mumbai Police. However, after the police found no substantial evidence in the primary case, they submitted a closure report, which has now been accepted by the court.

As per Supreme Court guidelines, if the predicate (original) offence does not stand, a money laundering case based on it cannot survive. This raises the likelihood that the ED’s case against Sunetra Pawar and Rohit Pawar may also collapse.

The allegations dated back to 2007–2011, when the apex cooperative bank was accused of granting irregular loans to sugar factories and spinning mills. It was claimed that financially distressed units were repeatedly given loans in violation of norms, and when the loans went unpaid, the properties were auctioned at throwaway prices and allegedly acquired by associates of those involved. The transactions were said to have caused an estimated loss of Rs 25,000 crore to the bank.

Social activist Anna Hazare had filed a protest petition opposing the closure report, while the ED had moved an intervention application. However, the special court rejected both pleas and formally accepted the closure report, effectively bringing the charges against all 70 accused to an end.

The MSCB case may be nearing closure after the court’s latest order, offering relief to the NCP and possibly ending ED proceedings against the Pawar family.
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