Baramati Agro asked to file affidavit

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed the management of Baramati Agro Industry, which is run by Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar’s nephew Rajendra Pawar, to file an affidavit stating that that its proposed sugar factory in Baramati is a private venture.  

Pawar has approached the HC in light of the freeze imposed by the court on the government granting fresh permissions to cooperative societies for setting up new sugar factories in the state.

The order was passed on a PIL, which pointed out several financial irregularities in the management of cooperative sugar factories and that the government was indiscriminately giving permissions for new factories.

Pawar’s case is that since the factory will be a private venture it will not be availing the loan provided by the government to cooperative sugar factories.

Justices JN Patel and Amjad Sayed asked the government to provide a list of sugar factories, which have defaulted on government loans and the names of factories which have sought permission for expansion.