Gujarat HC has asked fisheries minister Purushottam Solanki, and the state government to file a reply within three weeks to charges of corruption levelled against the minister in a petition.
The Gujarat high court has asked the fisheries minister, Purushottam Solanki, and the state government to file a reply within three weeks to charges of corruption levelled against the minister in a petition.
The petitioner, Ishaq Maradia, has accused the minister of corruption in giving contracts in 2008 for fishing in 58 reservoirs across the state. The petition further alleges that as the state exchequer would have suffered a loss of Rs40 crore in 2008 because of the minister’s corruption, he should be prosecuted for indulging in corrupt practices.
A division bench of the high court headed by chief justice SJ Mukhopadhaya handed down this order on Wednesday in response to Maradia’s petition. The case will come up for further hearing on February 10.
The petitioner had moved the high court through his counsels, Mukul Sinha and Rajesh Mankad, as the state government had turned down his plea for permission to prosecute Solanki for corruption. Maradia has alleged that, in 2008, the minister had demanded a huge sum of money for award of fishing contracts for 58 reservoirs across the state at very low rates. Maradia has also submitted the affidavit of a contractor who has alleged that Solanki had asked for Rs30 lakh to give the fishing contract to his co-operative society.
The state fisheries department had awarded fishing contracts in 2008 to different individuals and co-operative societies for water reservoirs and other water bodies across the state.
Crying foul over the way the contracts had been awarded, Ishaq had filed a petition in the high court in 2008. After hearing the petition, justice RM Doshit had cancelled the earlier contracts and ordered that the process of awarding contracts be started afresh.
Maradia’s counsels, Mukul Sinha and Rajesh Mankad, submitted that, in 2008, Solanki had ordered that the lease for fishing be awarded to 58 parties without following a procedure. “The state exchequer had received Rs2.36 crore for leasing out 28 out of the total of 58 sites,” the counsels submitted before the court. “But when the government initiated a fresh process as per the high court order, it received Rs44.68 crore for the 28 sites. Therefore, the minister had earlier caused a loss of Rs40 crore to the government.” The counsels also alleged that the minister had asked for illegal gratification. “Earlier, the contractors were asked to pay huge amounts to Solanki for the contracts,” the counsels alleged in the petition. “One Jeraji Pagi, whose contract was cancelled, has filed an affidavit alleging that he was asked to pay Rs30 lakh by the minister to get a contract.”
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