Ajit Pawar (ANI image)
NEW DELHI: Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said on Sunday that an inquiry has begun into alleged irregularities in the sale of government-owned land in Pune to a company linked to his son, Parth Pawar. He added that “the truth will soon come out before the public.”Speaking to reporters in Baramati, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief said the state government has appointed a probe committee, headed by additional chief secretary Vikas Kharge to investigate the matter.“I have already presented my stand clearly on various issues ongoing over the past few days. An inquiry has begun and the truth will soon come before the public,” the NCP chief said.Pawar added, “I still don’t understand how a document can be registered without even a transaction of one rupee? We’ll know within a month why the person who carried out this registration actually did it.”The controversy centres on the sale of around 40 acres of prime government land in Pune’s Mundhwa area, reportedly valued at around Rs 1,800 crore to Amadea Enterprises LLP, a firm in which Parth Pawar is a partner, for Rs 300 crore. The deal came under scrutiny after allegations surfaced that the land, reserved for government purposes was sold without the necessary clearances.Two FIRs have been registered in connection with the case, though Parth Pawar has not been named in either.Based on a complaint by the Inspector General of Registrars’ office, the Pimpri Chinchwad police have filed an FIR against Digvijay Patil, Shital Tejwani (who represented 272 landowners through power of attorney) and sub-registrar RB Taru for alleged cheating and misappropriation.Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has said that action is being taken strictly as per law and that “there is no question of saving anybody.” He confirmed that those found guilty will face action after the inquiry.Ajit Pawar, meanwhile, has maintained that neither he nor his office had any role in the transaction. He said that Parth and his business partner were unaware that the land in question belonged to the government.“The concerned land is a government land which cannot be sold. Parth and his partner were not aware of this fact. How the registration (of its sale) was done and who is responsible will come out in the probe being headed by ACS Vikas Kharge, who will submit his report in a month,” Pawar said.On Friday, Pawar had announced that the sale deed had been scrapped, adding that “not a single rupee has changed hands” in the deal. Officials have said that the company will have to pay double the stamp duty of around Rs 42 crore to get the transaction cancelled.In a statement issued, Pawar clarified that transparency and adherence to the law have been the guiding principles of his 35-year political career.“I have never flouted any rules in my 35-year political career. If anyone from my family or anyone close to me does something wrong, I will never support it. I have gathered all information about the case and spoken to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. I told him he can order a probe,” he said.Pawar acknowledged that his son made a mistake by not consulting legal advisors before entering into the agreement.“I will advise him that even if any close associate comes to him with any deal, he should not go ahead without consulting legal advisors. It was a lesson for him,” Pawar said.The deputy CM further added that political opponents often revive old allegations before elections.“Earlier too, allegations of (irregularities of) Rs 70,000 crore were made against me, it’s been 15 to 16 years since then. Whenever there are elections, multiple accusations are made against us. We try to work transparently, but as soon as we do, people start digging up and alleging against random land deals,” he remarked.The row has also drawn sharp political reactions. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged that the land, which was reserved for Dalits, was sold at a “throwaway price” to a minister’s family member, calling it an act of “land theft” and questioning the silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Go to Source
