FIR against Sanjay Raut on complaint by woman witness

The Mumbai police on Sunday registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on the charge of insulting the modesty of woman on the complaint lodged by a witness in a money laundering case being probed by the Enforcement Directorate claiming she was threatened.

The complaint was lodged at Vakola police station by the witness, Swapna Patkar, a police official said on Sunday night.

Patkar had approached the police recently claiming she was given rape and murder threat in a typed paper, which was inserted in a newspaper delivered to her on July 15, he said.

Recently, an audio clip in which a male voice can be heard threatening a woman using foul language went viral.

On Saturday, a non-cognisable (NC) case was registered under section 507 (Criminal intimidation by anonymous communication) of the Indian Penal Code, which was converted into an FIR on Sunday, the official said.

Police have invoked sections 504 (insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (Punishment for criminal intimidation), and 509 (intending to insult the modesty of a woman) if the IPC against Raut.

Meanwhile, Patkar on Sunday registered her statement with the police, the official said, adding that she was provided security as requested by her.

Earlier in the day, the ED conducted a search at the residence of Raut in connection with the money laundering case linked to the Patra chawl land 'scam' and he was taken to the ED office in south Mumbai. -