Cops book two in forest land case after Rohit Pawar’s allegations

The accused are Gangadhar Biwalkar and Yashwant Biwalkar. The FIR was registered on the complaint of Bhausaheb Javare, assistant conservator of forests with the state forest department

MUMBAI: Raigad police have booked two members of the Biwalkar family for allegedly selling forest land in Panvel despite having no legal rights over the land parcel. The two have been booked for cheating in an FIR registered by Rasayani police on Wednesday.

Cops book two in forest land case after Rohit Pawar’s allegations

The accused are Gangadhar Biwalkar and Yashwant Biwalkar. The FIR was registered on the complaint of Bhausaheb Javare, assistant conservator of forests with the state forest department.

The action comes a year after NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar alleged that the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) had illegally handed over land, estimated to be worth ₹5,000 crore, to the Biwalkar family. The proposal was approved during the previous Mahayuti government led by then chief minister Eknath Shinde, when Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat was serving as CIDCO chairperson. He now heads the state social justice department.

According to the FIR, the ancestors of the accused had been entrusted with 1.30 hectares of land for management for a period of 90 years under Section 38 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927. However, the land subsequently vested with the state government following the enactment of the Maharashtra Private Forests (Acquisition) Act, 1975, which provides for the acquisition of private forests by the government.

“Despite being aware of this, the Biwalkars sold the land for ₹15,06,739 in 2009 to two individuals, namely Suresh Kalani and Indrapal Papneja. Selling the said land by pretending the ownership of the land amounts to cheating,” said Javare in the FIR.

In a social media post, Pawar said, “I presented 12,000 pages of evidence seeking action against the Biwalkar family for grabbing hundreds of acres of forest department land worth ₹5,000 crore in Navi Mumbai. We repeatedly followed up with the authorities for an FIR and held protests. Finally, after nearly a year, an FIR has been registered against them, albeit belatedly.”