Prithviraj to have a rough debut

Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan may order a probe into the Adarsh cooperative housing society scam on the first day of the winter session of state legislature that begins in Nagpur on Wednesday, said sources.

Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan may order a probe into the Adarsh cooperative housing society scam on the first day of the winter session of state legislature that begins in Nagpur on Wednesday, said sources.

HT Image

The state government is in trouble due to involvement of successive chief ministers and several bureaucrats in clearing various aspects of the controversial society, which came up on a land in possession of the defence. The opposition, Shiv Sena-BJP, has already demanded a judicial enquiry into the scam. “The chief minister is keen on a probe into the scam. He is consulting legal advisors to decide whether it could be a judicial probe by a retired or sitting judge,” said a source.

The defence ministry has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe involvement of defence officers, but there has been no investigation at the state level.

“We are ready to discuss all aspects of the issue,” said Chavan, responding to questions over Adarsh on the eve of the session’s first day.

Also, the Congress-NCP government will have a lot of explaining to do over the Lavasa hill city controversy and various land scams. Besides, the unseasonal rainfall in past few weeks have damaged crops in several parts of the state and the government will have to provide a compensation package to the farmers in distress.

The opposition is all geared up to give Chavan a tough time. They boycotted the customary tea party hosted by the CM on Tuesday, citing inclusion of tainted ministers in the newly-formed state cabinet.

Earlier in the day, opposition leader in the assembly Eknath Khadse said they wanted a probe under the Commission of Inquiries Act. “CBI will not probe the involvement of politicians and bureaucrats. We want a probe under Commission of Inquiries Act so that the government will be forced to take action against the guilty,” said Khadse. He also demanded immediate suspension of bureaucrats involved in the scam.