Mumbai:
The Congress, besieged by allegations of corruption being its Standard Operating Procedure, now has new trouble in Maharashtra. The opposition claims that the state government's auditor has faulted several ministers who allegedly gifted land with heavy discounts to trusts associated with them or their families. Among the ministers who allegedly misused their power in these land deals are former chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and public works minister Chhagan Bhujbal, who belongs to the NCP, which partners with the Congress in the state government.
The report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has yet to be officially shared. The BJP says it has a copy on CD and says the government is trying to delay placing the report on record because of its embarrassing findings.
Addressing a press conference this afternoon, BJP Spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said Mr Deshmukh has no right to be in the cabinet and must step down. "Vilasrao Deshmukh has to clear his name in the Supreme Court observation and the land allotment to the NGO... If he does not step down, the PM should remove him," she said.
"Wait till the 16th when the government is likely to table the report. Then I may react," said Mr Deshmukh who is now a union minister.
The report says that the Manjara Trust, founded by Mr Deshmukh, was given a large piece of land in 2005 in suburban Borivali to set up a dental college. The fund was asked to pay Rs. 6.5 crores, while the auditor allegedly states its market value was Rs. 30 crores.
"It was noticed that out of four applicants for the plot, the chief minister approved application of the Manjara charitable trust in preference to the other three applicants without assigning any specific reason for the preferential allotment," says the report, according to the Press Trust of India. Four years later, there was still no sign of the dental college. In 2011, the trust asked for permission to change the agreement so that the land could be used for educational activity.
"This reveals that requisitioning of the land was just with an intention to holding on to it," the CAG report purportedly states, adding that the government lost revenue by not re-claiming the land when the dental college was not set up. Because the terms of the agreement with the trust were unclear and loose on paper, the government could not opt out of the deal.
Mr Deshmukh has been indicted by the Supreme Court yesterday for giving 21 acres of land in Goregaon, Mumbai, at a throwaway price to film-maker Subhash Ghai for a film academy.
The BJP's copy of the same CAG report also states that in Nashik, a plot of land meant for government use was given to a trust headed by Sameer Bhujbal, whose uncle Chaggan Bhujbal is a minister in the Maharashtra government. The land was allotted in two instalments in 2003 and 2009, even though the finance department of the government had reportedly pointed out that the prices agreed to were unfairly low.
Another trust named the Bharti Vidyapeeth was allegedly given a piece of land in Pune. It was headed by forest minister Patangrao Kadam. Irregularities in the deal allegedly cost the government more than Rs. 4 crores in losses.
The report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has yet to be officially shared. The BJP says it has a copy on CD and says the government is trying to delay placing the report on record because of its embarrassing findings.
Addressing a press conference this afternoon, BJP Spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said Mr Deshmukh has no right to be in the cabinet and must step down. "Vilasrao Deshmukh has to clear his name in the Supreme Court observation and the land allotment to the NGO... If he does not step down, the PM should remove him," she said.
"Wait till the 16th when the government is likely to table the report. Then I may react," said Mr Deshmukh who is now a union minister.
The report says that the Manjara Trust, founded by Mr Deshmukh, was given a large piece of land in 2005 in suburban Borivali to set up a dental college. The fund was asked to pay Rs. 6.5 crores, while the auditor allegedly states its market value was Rs. 30 crores.
"It was noticed that out of four applicants for the plot, the chief minister approved application of the Manjara charitable trust in preference to the other three applicants without assigning any specific reason for the preferential allotment," says the report, according to the Press Trust of India. Four years later, there was still no sign of the dental college. In 2011, the trust asked for permission to change the agreement so that the land could be used for educational activity.
"This reveals that requisitioning of the land was just with an intention to holding on to it," the CAG report purportedly states, adding that the government lost revenue by not re-claiming the land when the dental college was not set up. Because the terms of the agreement with the trust were unclear and loose on paper, the government could not opt out of the deal.
Mr Deshmukh has been indicted by the Supreme Court yesterday for giving 21 acres of land in Goregaon, Mumbai, at a throwaway price to film-maker Subhash Ghai for a film academy.
The BJP's copy of the same CAG report also states that in Nashik, a plot of land meant for government use was given to a trust headed by Sameer Bhujbal, whose uncle Chaggan Bhujbal is a minister in the Maharashtra government. The land was allotted in two instalments in 2003 and 2009, even though the finance department of the government had reportedly pointed out that the prices agreed to were unfairly low.
Another trust named the Bharti Vidyapeeth was allegedly given a piece of land in Pune. It was headed by forest minister Patangrao Kadam. Irregularities in the deal allegedly cost the government more than Rs. 4 crores in losses.
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