Pune land deal | Govt not protecting anyone, will act against guilty: CM Devendra Fadnavis on Bombay HC's question

Nagpur: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said that from the very beginning, the government's stand in the Pune land deal case, involving a firm linked to Deputy CM Ajit Pawar's son Parth, was not to protect anyone, and assured that action will be taken against whoever is found guilty.

He was talking to reporters on the sidelines of a programme here. Earlier in the day, the Bombay High Court raised sharp questions regarding the police probe into the controversial Pune land deal, asking whether they were protecting Parth Pawar by not naming him in the land deal FIR.

Noting that Parth, a majority partner in the firm involved, was omitted from the FIR, a single bench of Justice Madhav Jamdar asked, "Is the police protecting the son of the deputy chief minister and only investigating others?"

The sale of 40 acres of land in Pune's upscale Mundhwa area for Rs 300 crore to Amadea Enterprises LLP, in which Parth is a majority partner, came under scrutiny after it emerged that the plot belongs to the government and it could not be sold.

The firm was also allegedly exempted from paying Rs 21 crore in stamp duty.

When asked about the HC's remarks in the case, Fadnavis said, "I have not heard what the HC has said, but a proper reply will be submitted in the court about what it has asked for. From the very beginning, the government's stand is not to protect anyone. And action will be taken against whomever is guilty. Hence, complete information about the action taken so far and the action that will be taken in future will be given to the HC."

When asked about the rising incidents of leopard attacks in Maharashtra, the CM said the forest department has started taking steps to address the issue in parts of the state.

Twenty-two leopards have been captured and traps have been set up in huge numbers to catch them, he said. The government is also working on setting up leopard rescue centres, which will further help capturing the felines that were born in agriculture fields and not in forest areas, Fadnavis said.