HC jolt to Pawar kin in plot fraud case

MUMBAI: In a petition alleging illegal allotment of plots in Baramati near Pune to institutions run by family members of union irrigation minister Sharad Pawar, the Bombay High Court on Thursday said there was "prima facie substance in the allegations".

The petition filed by Pune-based Hari Potare alleged that the plots that were owned by the Krishna Valley Corporation were distributed among various institutions run by the Pawar family in Baramati, with each institution getting anything between one and 13 hectares of land.

The institutions named in the petition include Senior Citizen's Association, Kustigir Sangh, Vidya Pratishthan, and Anand Smruti Pratishthan that are run by the Pawar family in Baramati.

The petition further alleges that the reservations earlier made by the Krishna valley Corporation on the disputed plots of land were set aside by an order of state water resources minister and Sharad Pawar's nephew Ajit Pawar.

The case was heard by a division bench comprising Bilal Nazki and SA Bobade on Thursday. The state government took a defensive stand saying that the petition was filed owing to political rivalry between Potare and the Pawar family.

The institutions and the government both urged the court to dismiss the petition alleging that it was malafide.

The court, however, said the reasons behind filing of the petition could be politically motivated or the petitioner could even be associated with a political party but the allegations appeared to have substance and it would hear the case extensively.

The court, however, asked Potare to submit details of his social and political background and adjourned the case for four weeks. The court will now hear the case on April 11.