Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, May 17: Former Maharashtra deputy chief minister Chhagan Bhujbal became the target of a ransom threat, with the accused demanding Rs 1 crore in exchange for allegedly "helping" during a fake Income Tax raid. Acting swiftly, the Nashik police apprehended the suspect through a sting operation.

The threat came via a phone call in which the accused, later identified as Rahul Bhusare, falsely claimed to be part of an Income Tax team about to conduct a raid on Bhujbal’s farmhouse in Trimbakeshwar. He promised to “assist” Bhujbal during the supposed raid — but only in exchange for a hefty ransom.

Bhujbal’s personal assistant, Santosh Gaikwad, engaged the suspect in a conversation that played a crucial role in tracking him down. The police, alerted to the extortion attempt, launched an immediate probe and laid a trap to catch the caller.

Initial investigations traced the call to Dharampur in Gujarat, but the suspect was lured into revealing his location and instructed to collect the money from Karanjali village in Peth taluka, Maharashtra. It was there that the Nashik police executed their sting operation and arrested him.

The accused, Rahul Bhusare, a resident of Karanjali village, is now in custody and being interrogated by the authorities to uncover further details behind the extortion attempt.

The police have yet to determine whether the act was carried out independently or involved a larger network. Further investigation is ongoing.