Clean chit for DCM Ajit Pawar in irrigation scam cases?

Mumbai

 The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Monday has given a clean chit in some of the cases allegedly involving Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, official sources said here.

The ACB has closed the investigations into at least nine cases in which Ajit Pawar was allegedly involved – though it is not clear if he was directly named, on the first day of the new government taking office today, 48 hours after it was sworn-in early on Saturday.

However, Director-General of Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau Parambir Singh said today that “none of these cases closed today pertain to DCM Ajit Pawar”.

These nine files pertain to big and small irrigation projects in Washim, Yavatmal, Amravati and Buldhana under the Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation (VIDC) for the Vidarbha region, according to a notification issued by the ACB, Mumbai.

These cases, among others – collectively known as the infamous Rs.70,000 crore ‘Irrigation Scam’ – were allegedly perpetrated around 10 years ago had created a massive political furore in the past.

Ajit Pawar was handling the irrigation department at the relevant time when the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party alliance was in power, and the (then) opposition parties like Bharatiya Janata Party, Shiv Sena, Aam Aadmi Party and others raised it regularly to gain political mileage.

The ACB is investigating around 3000 tenders in irrigation related complaints in which two dozen first information reports have been registered, which are being investigated as before, and the files closed today are only nine routine cases.

ACB officials also said that today’s closure are conditional and could be reopened if more information comes to light during investigations or a court order for further probes.

The Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti (VJAS) has taken strong objections to the sudden closure of these alleged scam cases with a threat to launch an agitation and also counter it legally.

“In these nine cases alone pertaining to the VIDC matters, there are very serious allegations of misuse or siphoning off of over Rs.9000 crores. After so many years, how can they be abruptly closed?” VJAS President Kishore Tiwari told IANS.

He said that the manner in which it has come two days after the new government led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and DCM Ajit Pawar was sworn-in, itself makes the ACB’s move “very suspicious” and would be challenged at all levels. (IANS)