Bombay High Court quashes Pankaja Munde’s Rs 12,000 crore tender
Minister Pankaja Munde’s bad day in office continued on Monday with the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay high court quashing the controversial Rs 12,000 crore tender for take home ration (THR), an anganwadi scheme. The court has now ordered decentralisation of the THR supply through women self-help groups (SHGs).
Ms Munde was on Friday divested of the water conservation portfolio.
The court struck down Maharashtra government tenders worth Rs 12,000 crore issued earlier this year for purchase and supply of THR, after Kirti Karwa, secretary of women self-help group federation complained of irregularities in the process.
Take home ration is foodgrain or raw nutritional comestible that is given to anganwadi children to be carried home and cooked.
The state women and child development ministry led by Ms Munde had issued the tenders in February meant for the state’s 100,00-plus anganwadis (day care centres).
The SHGs claimed that the tender conditions were designed to favour large companies and established cartels of contractors, even though the Supreme Court guidelines dictated that the state governments award such contracts through a proper process to SHGs so that women get employment and locally preferred nutritional THR items are supplied.
Leader of opposition (LoP) Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil had also raised the issue of tenders and had claimed that the bid had been drafted in such a way so that only three major players would be benefited, instead of women groups.
NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik on Monday demanded that the THR bidding be probed by the anti-corruption bureau and till then minister for women and child welfare Ms Munde be sacked from the Cabinet. Ms Karwa, while welcoming the the high court decision, said that it was a victory of truth and the court has slammed the corrupt machinery of the state as well exposed the nexus of corrupt politicians and suppliers.
The move comes as a setback for chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who has tried to build the image of a corruption-free administration, but was forced to expel his senior-most party colleague Eknath Khadse from the Cabinet last month over allegations of land grab.
