The CBI, which is probing the alleged scam in the allotment of flats in the Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society in South Mumbai for the past 15 months, wants three more months to complete the probe.
The CBI, which is probing the alleged scam in the allotment of flats in the Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society in South Mumbai for the past 15 months, wants three more months to complete the probe. A division bench of Justices SA Bobade and R Dhanuka of the Bombay high court, however, refused to grant any more time without the agency making a formal application within two weeks.
“We are not giving three months’ time. How long have you been probing the matter? Have you looked into the income-tax report?” justice Bobade asked K Sudhakar, the CBI counsel who termed the case a “complicated one” as “there are alleged several benami transactions needing to be probed”.
When the petitioner’s advocate Ashish Mehta, alleged the probe had been going at snail’s pace since 15 months, with the investigative agency repeatedly seeking more time at every hearing, Justice Bobade ruled that the CBI make a formal plea “stating all that you have done so far” and “what else is left to be done”.
The CBI recently questioned former CM Ashok Chavan, one of the 14 persons against whom an FIR was lodged last year. As per the FIR, which was lodged after the Bombay high court handed over the probe to CBI in February 2011, Chavan during his tenure as revenue minister (2001-03) entered into a criminal conspiracy along with the society’s chief promoter RS Thakur, retired Army official MM Wanchoo, senior IAS officer Jairaj Phatak and former MLC Kanhaiyalal Gidwani. The CBI found that Chavan had allegedly bypassed several rules to pass a letter urging the inclusion of civilians in the Adarsh society, initially meant for Kargil war widows and victims.
The HC is hearing many PILs seeking action against government officers and ministers allegedly involved in the scam.
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