The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted raids at 15 locations in Mumbai in connection with a money laundering case against businessman Sujit Patkar, who is said to be a close associate of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, an official said.

Patkar and his three partners allegedly bagged Mumbai civic body contracts fraudulently for managing COVID-19 field hospitals during the pandemic, the official said.

The raids were being conducted at locations of some officials of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and other people, including IAS officer Sanjeev Jaiswal, in connection with the COVID-19 hospital management contracts, he said.

The Azad Maidan police station here registered a forgery case against Lifeline Hospital Management Services firm, Patkar and his three partners in August last year.

Based on the FIR, the ED had registered a case to investigate the money laundering angle, the official said.

BMC Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal appeared before the ED in January this year in connection with alleged irregularities in award of contracts for the health facilities during the pandemic.

As per the FIR registered by the Azad Maidan police, the hospital management firm partners in June 2020 submitted an alleged fake partnership deed to the BMC and obtained contracts of jumbo COVID-19 centres at NSEL, Worli, Mulund, Dahisar (in Mumbai) and Pune without having any experience in the medical field.

After verification it was found that staffers and doctors at these COVID-19 centres did not have medical certificates and allegedly failed to provide proper treatment due to which people suffered, the FIR said.

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