Will Eknath Khadse get a clean chit in Dawood Ibrahim call case?

Eknath Khadse, who resigned as the Maharashtra revenue minister last week, is likely to be exonerated by the state police in connection with the charge that he received calls from fugitive mob boss Dawood Ibrahim.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a Home Department official said that the investigation into the alleged calls made to Khadse's cell phone from a Karachi-based land line (allegedly registered in the name of Dawood's wife) was almost over. The official said that a final report in this regard could be expected within the week.

"The Anti-Terrorism Squad (which probed the allegation) has received all the call data records... so far nothing significant has come out of the investigations into these call data records," the official said.

Earlier, crime branch of Mumbai police too had said the allegation had no substance.

Last week, the ATS had summoned Gujarat-based Manish Bhangale, who calls himself 'ethical hacker' and who had claimed to have obtained the records of a Pakistani telecom firm. However, Bhangale did not turn up. He has moved the Bombay High Court seeking a CBI probe; his petition would be heard on 14 June.

"The source of the information might have been fake and the agency is exploring this possibility," the official said.

Khadse has denied the allegation saying that the mobile number concerned was not even in operation for the past one year.

--PTI