Mumbai: Capital market veteran Anish Damania was invited earlier this month by the federal government of Devendra Fadnavis to develop into a part of the Maharashtra Institute for Suppose Tank Maharashtra Transformation (MITRA) crew of monetary and financial cussed peoples for the federal government of Devendra Fadnavis earlier this month.
On the day he introduced his determination to simply accept the supply, his spouse, Anjali Damania, criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Fadnavis for alleged involvement in irrigation fraud.
It is a unusual case of a Damanian couple. The spouse has the state authorities on her toes, leveling out a collection of corruption allegations towards the minister that led to the resignation of the minister, and the husband works immediately with retired officers identified to be Fadnavis’ meticulous confidants. And neither of them is confused about one another’s place.
“These are two various things. I am very pleased with him as my husband. He is in his manner and I’ve to say that I am making my contribution,” Anjali informed ThePrint.
“This isn’t prone to have an effect on my job. He’s a capital market advisor and his experience. We do not take pay or perks from the federal government.
Talking on the phrases of anonymity, the BJP chief stated that Anish’s appointment had nothing to do with Anjali and her work.
“Anish Damania is a proficient individual within the subject of finance and purely he’s appointed. If somebody is making different connections, I really feel that it is flawed,” the chief stated.
The appointment of Anish of MD group relations at JM Monetary disrupted the feathers inside the dominant Mahayuti. The chief of the Nationalist Parliament (Ajit Pawar) is incessantly an Anjali goal, however she can also be unavoidable by the leaders of the opposite two political events within the ruling alliance.
Does the federal government present braveness to renew investigations into irrigation fraud?
What’s your prime minister saying, “Does this nation settle for the nation?”
and
“What do you do with an irrigation rip-off? pic.twitter.com/lbwsdmlv2
– Mrs. Anjali Damania (@Anjali_Damania) September 12, 2025
Speaking to Print, NCP (Ajit Pawar) MLC Amol Mitkari urged that his get together was not utterly glad with the appointment. He puzzled if Anjali had levelled allegations towards the NCP leaders simply to take pleasure in such “advantages.”
“Now, in my view, one query is whether or not Anjali Damania is a social activist or if she labored on the authorities’s request, as a result of she focused the NCP, particularly Ajit Pawar.
Mitra was fashioned in November 2022 alongside the Nitya Yog line. The aim of this suppose tank is to show Maharashtra right into a trillion greenback economic system by 2027. The main target is on 10 sectors the place mining, group agriculture, photo voltaic vitality initiatives and biofuels are listed as precedence sectors.
After Fadnavis grew to become prime minister in Mahayuti 2.0, he eliminated Eknath Shinde’s intimate aide Ajay Ashar from the Mitra board earlier this yr and appointed retired Praveen Pardeshi as CEO.
Learn once more: How Maharashtra is making an attempt to popularize Service to Companies Act, Brainchild of CM Fadnavis
Anjali Damania and her profession
Anjali is understood for her anti-corruption marketing campaign towards political leaders. For some time, she was additionally a part of the Maharashtra troops of the Aam Aadmi get together in 2015.
She gained consideration by means of a collection of RTIs when she started revealing irrigation scams in Maharashtra in 2011-12. She ran into the headline when she filed a corruption allegation towards then deputy prime minister Ajit Pawar on allegations of irrigation fraud.
She even accused Nitin Gadkari of the Nexus allegations, then Minister of Agriculture Sharad Pawar, and numerous “frauds” that included them. She failed within the 2014 Lok Sabah election with Gadkari from her seat in Nagpur on an AAP ticket.
Among the many numerous allegations she made, opposing the BJP minister and the cussed Eknath Khadse was opposed in reference to Bhosari’s alleged land fraud. She went on a starvation strike requesting it’s faraway from his put up and the probe was launched.
Extra just lately, she put stress on the Mahayuti authorities to kill Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh earlier this yr. Walmik Karad, the trusted aide of NCP chief Dhananjay Munde, was named the mastermind of the homicide. Anjali held a collection of press conferences on the difficulty. Munde needed to soften his resignation.
Anjali additionally filed a corruption allegation towards Minister of State Manikrao Kokate, claiming that his belongings rose to Rs 48 in six years as they have been price Rs 6 trillion.
Anish Damani at Suppose Tank
Anish is a veteran of finance and funding. He holds a number of levels together with CA, CS, Value Accounting, CFA Half 2, and B.com. He has over 25 years of expertise within the capital markets and funding fields.
Since March he has been in MD Group relations on JM Monetary’s international platform. He beforehand additionally labored as CEO of IDFC Financial institution.
Anjali says that Anish was capable of meet Union Minister Piyush Goyal on July 1st as a consultant of his firm. She says his firm has solely three members as a part of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Trade Federation of Industrial Trade (FICCI), and “he (Anish) was invited by Piyush Goyal to develop into a member of Ficci, which Anish accepted.”
He then obtained an invite from Mithra and accepted it too. In Mithra, Anish labored intently with Paldesi, Fadnavis’ trusted aide.
Anjali attended a press convention on Monday, the place Anish stated there could be no function within the authorities or operations. He’ll solely develop into Mitra’s adviser, she stated.
(Edited by Ajet Tiwari)
Learn once more: Praveen Pardeshi is a director of Fadnavis’ Go-To-Ias, whose affect has solely grown after retirement
