Mumbai Police Seize Four Flats Linked to Ex-Husband of IPS Officer Rashmi Karandikar

Mumbai: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police has initiated proceedings to seize four flats allegedly purchased using proceeds of crime by Purushottam Chavan, the ex-husband of IPS officer Rashmi Karandikar. Chavan has been under arrest for over a year in multiple real estate fraud cases and is currently lodged in jail following arrests by both the EOW and the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

According to EOW officials, the four flats are located in a housing project developed by Dosti Realty in Thane. Investigators claim the properties were bought in the names of Chavan’s relatives during the period when he allegedly defrauded several homebuyers.

“We have begun the process of attaching the four flats under section 107 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which pertains to attachment and forfeiture of properties suspected to be derived from criminal activity,” an EOW officer said. A petition has also been filed before the court seeking formal attachment orders.

The agency is also examining financial transactions between Chavan and Karandikar. Investigators have told the court that around ₹2.64 crore was transferred from Chavan’s account to Karandikar’s account between 2017 and 2018.

The police claim Karandikar did not report this transfer as required under service rules, which mandate government officers to declare investments exceeding six months of their basic salary. The amount was allegedly invested by her in intraday share trading and subsequently lost.

A default report regarding the alleged non-disclosure of investments has been sent to the Director General of Police (DGP) office, officials said.

Karandikar has filed for divorce, citing mental cruelty, financial harassment, incompatibility, and Chavan’s alleged concealment of his financial dealings. She has also mentioned his bipolar disorder in her petition.

Chavan faces multiple FIRs related to large-scale cheating in the name of affordable housing and government land schemes. In May 2024, the EOW arrested Chavan for allegedly duping 19 people of ₹24.78 crore by promising flats at concessional rates under government housing schemes. At the time, he was already in ED custody in a separate alleged ₹263.95-crore income tax fraud case. In June 2024, the EOW arrested him again in a ₹7.42 crore cheating case, where he allegedly claimed he could facilitate the sale of government and Bombay Port Trust (BPT) land at throwaway prices.

Investigators say the proceeds from these scams were routed into real estate purchases, investments, and personal expenditure.