Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Tuesday asked the state government and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) what was the change in circumstances for the Maharashtra governor to give sanction to prosecute former chief minister and Congress leader Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh housing society scam, when sanction had been rejected on the first occasion.
A division bench of Justice Ranjit More and Justice Anuja Prabhudesai was hearing a petition filed by Congress MP Chavan challenging a decision of governor C. Vidyasagar Rao granting sanction to CBI to prosecute him in the Adarsh scam. Chavan’s petition termed the governor’s order as “arbitrary, illegal and unjust and passed without proper application of mind” and with malafide intentions.
In February 2016, Mr Rao had granted sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan on charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code and various other sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
On Tuesday, Chavan’s lawyer Amit Desai informed that the governor had first refused sanction to prosecute but permission was granted later when CBI again approached with fresh material against Chavan.
The court then asked, “What was the change in circumstances? Why it was first refused and then granted? What changed?”
Mr Desai said, “CBI has not brought any new material on record.” He further said that the judicial commission which was constituted by the then government had made certain observations in its report, and a single bench of the high court also had made observations when Chavan had filed a petition to remove his name from the list of the accused.
CBI lawyer Hiten Venegaonkar pointed out to the court that even a bench headed by Justice More himself had made certain observations against the accused persons while dismissing a petition filed by Adarsh society challenging the order of demolition passed by the Union ministry of environment and forest (MoEF).
The court adjourned the case to April 17 for further hearing and asked the state advocate general Rohit Deo to appear in the matter.
