The Bombay high court has ordered the release of former Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC) commissioner Anil Pawar, who is alleged to have received bribes worth ₹169 crore for approving unauthorised construction while he was the civic chief till July 2025.
The high court has also called Pawar’s arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) ‘illegal’, PTI reported.
The ED arrested the IAS officer in July this year alleging that Pawar received bribes worth ₹169 crore in three years during his posting as the Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC) commissioner.
He held the position of VVCMC commissioner from January 2022 to July 2025.
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The probe agency, in a chargesheet filed before a Mumbai court on Wednesday, said that the former VMCC commissioner made at least ₹169 crore in bribes and commissions for approving building plans and allowing illegal construction within VVCMC limits.
The ED has named 18 people and entities in its chargesheet before special PMLA court judge R B Rote. Apart from Pawar, the agency has arrested VVCMC town planner Y Shiva Reddy and two builders Sitaram and Arun Gupta in the money laundering probe.