Speaking for the first time after the Maharashtra government tabled the judicial inquiry commission report on the Adarsh scam in the State Assembly, Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde on Monday said the land on which building stands always belonged to the State government.
“The Adarsh society’s land belonged to the State government. The society was not meant for Kargil war heroes. There was nothing wrong in buying flats in Adarsh,” he said. He was speaking at a function, organised by Congress MP Sanjay Nirupam, to unveil a statue of Babasaheb Ambedkar in Mumbai.
Those indicted by the inquiry commission for granting “political patronage” for the building project include, Mr. Shinde and former Chief Ministers Ashok Chavan, late Vilasrao Deshmukh and Shivajirao Nilangekar Patil. Nationalist Congress Party Ministers Sunil Tatkare and Rajesh Tope have also been indicted. The Commission’s report questioned Mr. Shinde’s haste in clearing the land allotted to the building, ignoring the advice of the finance department.
Meanwhile, a week after demanding a cut in power tariff in Mumbai on the lines of the Delhi State government, Congress MP and spokesperson Mr. Nirupam on Monday asked the Centre to increase the number of subsidised gas cylinders from nine to 12.
“We first increased the number from six to nine. The middle class and poor will benefit if the number is now taken to 12,” he said.
Mr. Shinde said he would convey the message to the Cabinet, but could not make a comment as the final decision was not yet taken.
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