Maharashtra Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) DG, Parambir Singh said, “We are investigating around 3000 tenders in irrigation related complaints
Mumbai: Just after 48 hours, Ajit Pawar was sworn-in as Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister, the irrigation scam case against Sharad Pawar’s nephew was officially closed today. The irrigation scam, pegged at around Rs 70,000 crore, relates to alleged corruption and irregularities in approval and execution of various irrigation projects in Maharashtra during the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party rule. The move has given ammunition to the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress combine, which has accused the BJP of pressuring Ajit Pawar to switch sides.
The Supreme Court earlier on Tuesday reserved till 10.30 am its order on a plea by the Congress-NCP-Shiv Sena combine’s plea against the Maharashtra government’s decision to swear in Devendra Fadnavis as chief minister in a midnight coup engineered by the BJP with the support of Ajit Pawar. A bench comprising Justices NV Ramana, Ashok Bhushan, and Sanjiv Khanna is likely to pass an order on the holding of a floor test, which the combine was pressing for today itself.
The Vidarbha Irrigation scam case has been officially closed two days after Ajit Pawar swore as Deputy CM with the BJP government in Maharashtra. The file of inquiry against Ajit Pawar in the irrigation scam has been shut down. Soon after coming to power in 2014, Fadnavis gave the go-ahead for a state Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) inquiry into Ajit Pawar and other top NCP leaders but the probe is suddenly shut today
Till last year, the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had said that as the minister of the Water Resource Department (WRD), scams like the multi-crore Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation scam come under the responsibility of Ajit Pawar.
What was the irrigation scam?
The Vidarbha Irrigation scam, pegged at around Rs 70,000 crore, relates to alleged corruption and irregularities in approval and execution of various irrigation projects in Maharashtra during the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) rule. Pawar was among the NCP ministers who were in charge of the irrigation department at different times between 1999 and 2014 during the Congress-NCP coalition rule in the state.
According to sources in Maharashtra Anti Corruption Bureau, in the list of cases being circulated on social media, none of the cases belong to the alleged irrigation corruption case against Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister, Ajit Pawar. The Bureau added that the cases that were closed today were conditional, cases could reopen again if more information comes to light or courts order for further inquiry.
Maharashtra Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) DG, Parambir Singh said, “We are investigating around 3000 tenders in irrigation related complaints. These are routine inquiries which are closed and all ongoing investigations are continuing as they were earlier.”
Maharashtra Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) DG, Parambir Singh said, “We will issue a clarification soon on the case. These weren’t even the cases related to Ajit Pawar.”
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
