Mr. Y P Singh, a former police officer, has levied serious accusations against Mr. Sharad Pawar, alleging that he is at the heart of a significant real estate scam. During this statement, Mr. Singh positioned Mr. Pawar as the most recent high-profile figure to be implicated in real estate fraud, joining others like Mr. Vadra. As the chief of the Nationalist Congress Party and the Union Agriculture Minister, Mr. Pawar has drawn scrutiny following these allegations from Mr. Singh, who termed him the nucleus of a broader real estate scandal.
In his remarks, Mr. Singh also critiqued Mr. Arvind Kejriwal, suggesting that he exhibits a selective approach to targeting politicians. He accused Mr. Kejriwal of withholding information regarding the Maharashtra real estate scandal while publicly opposing BJP's Nitin Gadkari, implying that Mr. Pawar was somehow shielded from scrutiny.
During a press conference, Mr. Singh brought attention to Mr. Ajit Pawar, the former Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, and nephew of Mr. Sharad Pawar. According to Mr. Singh, Ajit Pawar was involved in the controversial granting of 341 acres of land to Lake City Corp, leased at a remarkably low rate of 23,000 rupees per month for a lengthy duration of 30 years. This rate, he pointed out, is less than what one would expect to pay for a single BHK apartment in Mumbai.
Additionally, he highlighted that Ajit Pawar's cousin, Mrs. Supriya Sule, alongside her husband Sadanand, holds a substantial stake in the Lake City project, with Mrs. Sule reportedly owning at least 10.4% of the shares. Even though the Sule family sold their shares in 2006, the precise selling price remains undisclosed. Nonetheless, an appraisal by Axis Bank after two years indicated that the value of those shares might have ballooned to an estimated 10,000 crore, suggesting they sold their interest at a minimum of 5,000 crore.
Moreover, Mrs. Sule's declared assets amount to around 15 crore, a total that includes 5 crore from the sale of Lavasa shares. Yet, under Axis Bank's assessment, those shares may have fetched at least 500 crore at the time of sale.
Mr. Ramesh Kumar, a revenue officer, reportedly faced repercussions for bringing these discrepancies to light. Singh asserted that Mr. Pawar, in his capacity as Union Agriculture Minister, had transgressed by interfering with Maharashtra’s land issues, despite ostensibly lacking jurisdiction.
Mr. Singh recounted that in 2006, Lavasa's plea for concessions was dismissed following a secret meeting held at the Ekant guesthouse, which included Mr. Pawar, Mr. Ajit, the then Chief Minister, and senior IAS officers. This clandestine assembly decided to issue a Global Floating Floor Space Index (FSI) Certificate to the group, further fueling the controversy.
Continuing his criticism, Mr. Singh contended that Mr. Kejriwal couldn’t claim ignorance about these issues, given his involvement in a report on the real estate scandal released in April 2009.
Singh threw his support behind Mr. Nitin Gadkari, arguing that although he faces criticism, his case pales in comparison to Mr. Pawar's complicity. He called for the filing of a First Information Report (FIR) to investigate Mr. Pawar’s involvement with the Lavasa land lease, suggesting that this should lead to a thorough investigation to possibly charge him. Mr. Singh indicated intentions to file the FIR with the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau and urged the media to scrutinize Mr. Pawar's continued tenure as a Union Minister.
In response to these allegations, Mr. Pawar defended the Lavasa project by stating that everything was executed according to the norms of Maharashtra’s hill station policy. He maintained that no regulations were violated, although he refrained from discussing further due to the ongoing judicial review of the matter.