Minister fabricated documents in Pune land scam: Bombay high court

Hearing the Pune land scam issue, the Bombay high court on Thursday observed that the offence is indeed very serious as a minister has fabricated the records.

The division bench was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Madhav Bhandari alleging that fake orders were passed under the Urban Land Ceiling and Act (ULCA) 1976 to grab land in the Pune urban agglomeration. “It is a serious issue. Even a minister has fabricated records,’’ said the judge. The judges said there is a need for a probe by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). They asked advocate general Ravi Kadam to peruse the report submitted by retired IAS officer Sudhakar Joshi.

Kadam submitted that taking action against a former minister would not be an issue. The judge, citing the report, said that due to the interference of an additional divisional commissioner in Pune some 12 years after an order was passed under the ULCRA the government lost 25,000 sq metres of land. As appellate authority, the additional divisional commissioner, re-opened three files after 12, 13 and 15 years bringing down the surplus land from 25,550 sq m to 550 sq m.

The judges observed that the government has suo motu (on its own) powers to review its own earlier orders. The judge said, “We suggest that government invoke its suo moto revisionary powers. There may be bonafide purchasers. You will have to calculate and get back the land.’’

Kadam said that fraud will not vitiate, so repealing ULCA is not an issue. He will also advice the government, who will take a call on whether the investigation should be handed to CBI. He is asked to give a copy to additional solicitor general Darius Khambata so that CBI can understand the magnitude of the issue.