After tabling the report in the Assembly, Prithviraj Chavan said the defence ministry had failed to prove that the land belonged to it.
The land in Colaba on which the controversial Adarsh building stands belongs to the Maharashtra government and not the defence ministry. Also, it was never reserved for Kargil war widows.
That is what the judicial commission investigating the Adarsh housing scam has said in its interim report. After tabling the report in the Assembly on Tuesday, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan said the defence ministry had failed to prove that the land belonged to it.
On the Kargil matter, the two-member commission, headed by retired high court judge JA Patil, said in the report: “At the time of arguments, counsel for ministry of defence, state government or even the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society uniformly submitted that there was no such reservation.” The commission termed the report final with regard to reservation, if any, for Kargil war widows and to the ownership of the land.
The findings would come as a relief to former chief minister Ashok Chavan who has been accused by the CBI of misusing his position as the state’s revenue minister to approve a resolution recommending the inclusion of civilians in Adarsh society with the ulterior motive of getting flats for his relatives. Chavan’s proposal, recommending 40% of the flats in Adarsh for civilians, was accepted when Shinde was the chief minister.
The CBI has questioned several top bureaucrats and politicians in connection with the scam.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi had asked Chavan to resign because of popular perception that the state government had grabbed defence land reserved for Kargil war widows, a senior AICC functionary said. “Our party can now cite the report to dismiss such allegations.”
Political analysts say the government sought the interim report to boost the party’s image, which has taken a beating in recent times over various corruption charges registered against its leaders.
A number of top civil and army officials and politicians have been accused of facilitating clearances for the building in lieu of flats. Nine of the 14 accused, including two senior IAS officers have been arrested.
A top CBI officer told agencies that the report would have no impact on its investigation. “Our mandate is different from that of the commission,” he said. “The CBI is looking into criminal misconduct and abuse of official position by government servants. We are not investigating who is the owner of the land or who was in possession of it.”
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}