Sanjay Raut alleges CM’s connection in a land scam worth ₹800 cr, files complaint with PM

Shiv Sena alleges ₹800 crore land acquisition scam in Nashik involving CM Shinde and builders. Sanjay Raut demands SIT probe, PMO intervention.

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena versus Shiv Sena battle for the Nashik Lok Sabha election took a new twist on Tuesday as the faction led by Uddhav Thackeray alleged that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his builder friends were beneficiaries of an ₹800 crore land acquisition scam within the jurisdiction of the Nashik Municipal Corporation. Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut also sent a complaint to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding the appointment of a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the accusations. Sena (UBT) raised the issue soon after senior NCP minister Chhagan Bhujbal took up the same issue with the chief minister recently.

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The complaint assumes significance against the backdrop of a tug-of-war between the Shiv Sena and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP to field their candidate from the Nashik Lok Sabha constituency. Bhujbal himself was interested in contesting the polls from the seat. The allegations made by Raut also come days after the Nashik police issued an externment notice to Shiv Sena (UBT) district chief Sudhakar Badgujar, who is considered close to Raut.

During the period from 2020 to 2022, many proposals for land acquisition through private negotiation for the development of the city were approved by the Nashik Municipal Corporation on the order of the then Urban Development Minister, Eknath Shinde. While the approval was given for around ₹157 crore in land acquisition proposals, politicians and builders, with the help of municipal government officials, spent ₹800 crore on the land acquisition. Eknath Shinde and his builder friends were the beneficiaries,” said Sanjay Raut.

While explaining the modus operandi, Raut said that there were over 27 cases where builders bought land from farmers and then, within one month, sold that land at much higher prices to the Nashik Municipal Corporation under land acquisition. “Some builders bought the land for ₹2 crore and sold it to the municipal corporation for around ₹50 crore. There are many such examples,” said Raut.

In a letter sent to the PMO, MP Raut from the Thackeray faction has underscored that even NCP minister Chagan Bhujbal, who hails from Nashik, raised the issue of irregularities in land acquisition in Nashik and wrote to CM Shinde. “Interestingly, the state government minister, Chagan Bhujbal, requested CM Eknath Shinde a few days ago to investigate this scam. However, no action has been taken yet. CM Shinde has also given a clean chit to the matter in response to a question in the Legislative Assembly. However, upon examining the actual evidence, it is evident that there has been a scam in both the process of payment given by the Municipal Corporation to the builders through private negotiations and the payment given by the Municipal Corporation through regular land acquisition via the Collector. An FIR should be registered by the Economic Offenses Wing of the police in this scam immediately. An SIT should be appointed to investigate this scam promptly,” said Raut in the letter written to the PMO.