Fadnavis orders probe into use of govt funds to Sharad Pawar-headed institute

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said the probe was ordered after the government received complaints

Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered an inquiry into the use of government funds at the Nationalist Nationalist Congress Party – Sharadchandra Pawar or NCP – SP chief Sharad Pawar-headed Vasantdada Sugar Institute (VSI), Pune.

NCP – SP called the move “politically motivated”. (PTI/File)

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said the probe was ordered after the government received complaints about the VSI. “When the government or the chief minister receives a complaint, an inquiry has to be conducted. There is nothing to fear if everything is in order. This is not being done deliberately,” Bawankule said.

There was no immediate reaction from Sharad Pawar.

NCP – SP lawmaker Rohit Pawar called the move “politically motivated,” underlining that VSI is one of the most prestigious training institutes in the country, functioning under Sharad Pawar’s guidance. “Launching an inquiry against it is purely political. This could be Fadnavis’s attempt to corner Ajit Dada after Union home minister Amit Shah visited Maharashtra and asserted that the BJP does not need allies,” he said, referring to National Congress Party (NCP) leader and deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar.

Ajit Pawar, who rebelled against his uncle Sharad Pawar and allied with the BJP in 2023, is among the members of the VSI’s governing body. Sugar mill operators are part of the institute’s board.

Sugarcane growers established the VSI, formerly known as the Deccan Sugar Institute, as an autonomous body in 1975. The VSI is focused on research and activities aimed at advancing the sugar industry.