MUMBAI: Lalit Modi has claimed that Pranab Mukherjee — as finance minister in 2010 in the UPA government — ordered an ED probe into his IPL business deals and personal financial transactions. Making this revelation in a document in TOI's possession, he says this was in retaliation to his role in Shashi Tharoor's sacking as Union minister.

The IPL founder had earlier blamed then home minister P Chidambaram for persecuting him for the same reason, a charge the latter has trashed.

The allegation against Mukherjee is part of Modi's 46-page statement to UK authorities seeking permission to stay on "as a representative of an overseas business".

Mukherjee's reaction was part of the Congress backlash for his claims on April 11, 2010 that Tharoor's late wife Sunanda Pushkar held 25% sweat equity in the Kochi IPL franchise and it was Tharoor who made the bid for the franchise. The disclosure left "Congress furious with me", said Modi.

Days later his tweets on the Kochi franchise and Shashi Tharoor's resignation, the I-T department raided the BCCI office and questioned him, Lalit Modi told UK authorities.

"By April 21, the ED and agencies responsible for foreign exchange and money laundering compliance had initiated probes against me relating to potential forex violations in IPL 2 held in South Africa," he said.

"I later learnt from my attorney, Mehmood Abdi, that soon after Tharoor's resignation, Mukherjee ordered a probe against me," he said.

Abdi could not be contacted for comments despite TOI's repeated efforts.

Talking about his tweets disclosing Pushkar's sweat equity in the Kochi franchise, Modi said: "Needless to say, this revelation caused a political earthquake in India. The BJP opposition called for the immediate resignation of Tharoor — held in high regard by Congress — from his ministerial post. Congress initially stood by him, but as the days passed pressure mounted on Tharoor. On April 18, 2010 he stood down as MoS, external affairs. In the end it was a decision made by Congress that Tharoor should resign rather than a decision made by Tharoor himself.''

Modi said: "I am sure the political downfall of Tharoor generated much enmity towards me in Mrs (Sonia) Gandhi as it did in Tharoor himself.''

On Mukherjee's role, Modi said: "It was clear even before Tharoor resigned that Congress was furious over my decision to reveal Tharoor's ownership interest in the Kochi bid."

On April 25, 2010 Modi was removed as IPL chief. The sack came within a week of Tharoor's resignation and less than two weeks after his tweet exposed Pushkar's stake in the IPL franchise.

Modi's reply to the tribunal, made available to the media at a briefing Abdi held earlier this week, contained the first three pages of the "witness statement by Vasundhara Raje'' who was then leader of opposition in Rajasthan, backing Modi's immigration application.

Her "confidential'' statement dated August 18, 2011 was in support of any immigration application Modi made. Her incomplete, unsigned statement started by saying: "I make this statement in support of any immigration application that Lalit Modi makes, but do so on the strict condition that my assistance will not become known to the Indian authorities.''

Over 10 paras, it detailed her royal and political background from her birth into the Gwalior royal family till December 8, 2003, when she was sworn in as Rajasthan's "first female CM''.

Modi spoke of "attacks from within the BCCI" and narrated how his relationship with N Srinivasan, then board treasurer, "started deteriorating from September 2007 because of the formation of IPL''. He said Srinivasan began considering him a threat within the BCCI setup.

Modi narrates how Srinivasan was a "close personal friend of P Chidambaram, then Union home minister and an MP from TN where Srinivasan headed the cricket association. Srinivasan, Modi said, "saw an opportunity to discredit me once and for all''. He said "storm clouds (had) gathered over me following my revelation of Tharoor's stake in the Kochi bid".

Modi's written submissions allege that NCP strongman Sharad Pawar, his party colleague Praful Patel and billionaire Mukesh Ambani had warned him that he would be arrested the moment he set foot on Indian soil.

Patel has on record denied the allegation and said rather he and Pawar had advised Modi to return to India whenever the former IPL boss had a conversation with them.

Modi also alleges that Ambani told him he could return if he promised to stay out of Rajasthan politics. "That's the word from the top," Modi claims Ambani told him.