They stole the party, then votes, now land: Uddhav blasts Mahayuti on Pune land deal

Meanwhile, two days after the land grab allegations, NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar said he supported the investigation into the case involving his grand-nephew Parth

MUMBAI: “First, they stole the party, then they stole votes, now they are stealing land.” It’s how Shiv Sena (UBT) Uddhav Thackeray led the opposition’s charge against the BJP-led Mahayuti government on the Pune land deal controversy involving deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar’s son Parth.

Mumbai, India - May 04, 2023: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray alongside MP Anil Desai and MP Sanjay Raut, addresses a press conference, at Matoshree, Bandra (East), in Mumbai, India, on Thursday, May 04, 2023. (Photo by Vijay Bate/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

Thackeray also alleged the steps being taken by the government were an eyewash. Although an investigation has been ordered, the case will eventually be shut, he said on Saturday. The Sena (UBT) leader’s remarks came a day after chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar announced a six-member committee headed by Vikas Kharge, additional chief secretary, revenue department, to investigate alleged irregularities in the ₹300-crore land deal in Mundhwa in Pune. The deal sought to transfer a 40-acre plot owned by the government to a company co-owned by Parth, with a ₹21-crore stamp duty waiver.

“On the very first day, when someone asked me to comment on the controversy, I told them nothing would happen. You will yell for a few days, we will also demand a probe. The CM will form a committee, saying no one will be spared, but eventually give a clean chit and the matter will be closed,” Thackeray remarked, aiming his fire at the BJP-led government.

Meanwhile, senior NCP (SP) leader Eknath Khadse, a former revenue minister, said numerous attempts were made, for over a decade, to grab the Mundhwa land parcel. The government should have acted years ago, when the issue was flagged.

“Those involved in the scam tried to get transfer of development rights (TDR), claiming they were owners of the land, in 2014. As leader of the opposition then, I had opposed the matter along with then MLA Devendra Fadnavis… After taking over as revenue minister, I suggested to the then dean of the agriculture college to register a case against Hemant Gawande for using bogus documents to grab government land. The case was filed at the Shivaji Nagar police station on February 2, 2015.”

Khadse said the same set of people have been booked for attempting to sell the same land years ago. “This would not have happened if the investigation had been done then, but the accused were protected,” he claimed.

He also said that then revenue minister Balasaheb Thorat had rejected similar proposals, twice, in 2013 and later in 2019. He added that the state agriculture department had proposed the suspension of tehsildar Suryakant Yewale and sub-registrar RB Taru for alleged misappropriation and cheating two months ago, but action was taken only after the case came to light as the land was reserved for a botanical garden.

Meanwhile, two days after the land grab allegations, NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar said he supported the investigation into the case involving his grand-nephew Parth. “The chief minister has publicly said the matter is serious hence he must bring the truth before the people,” Pawar told the media in Akola on Saturday.

Asked if Parth is being protected as he has not been named in either FIR filed in the case, the NCP (SP) president remarked, “Only the chief minister can tell why Parth was not named in the FIR.”

Pressed for a response to this charge, Fadnavis on Saturday said, “The FIR was filed against those directly involved in signing the land deal at the registrar’s office. This is only a First Information Report. The police will book others as and when they find evidence during the investigation.”