Ashok Chavan
Ashok Chavan

Ranjit Mahanti

THE Justice Sadhana Jadhav from Bombay High Court raised the query on Thursday while hearing a revision petition filed by CBI if sanction was required to prosecute former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on corruption charges. CBI is seeking permission to delete Chavan’s name from the FIR in the case following refusal of grant of sanction to prosecute from Maharashtra Governor K. Sankaranarayanan.

CBI had accused Chavan of approving additional floor space index (FSI) for Cuff Parades’s Adarsh Society in return for two flats for his relatives. He was also charged with illegally approving, as the then Revenue Minister, allotment of 40 per cent of the flats to civilians when the Society was allegedly meant only for Kargil war widows and defence personnel.

55-year-old Chavan along with 12 others have been booked under section 120 (b) of the IPC and under various charges of corruption in the Adarsh Housing scam case. CBI had filed a chargesheet in the case against 13 accused. Chavan is contesting Lok Sabha elections from Nanded.

After the trial court refused to delete Chavan’s name from the FIR filed by CBI in January 2011, the CBI had approached the high court last month.

Justice Jadhav asked “Do the CBI need sanction to prosecute under the general law of IPC?”

Hiten Venegaonkar CBI’s lawyer told HC that sanction to prosecute under IPC was required as Chavan was a sitting MLA, former Chief Minister and Revenue Minister at the time when the alleged offence was committed.

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