Naveen Uraon
THE Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief and Union Minister Sharad Pawar’s educational trust comes under Bombay High Court scanner. The High Court asked on April 15 to the Maharashtra government that under which rule the land was allotted to Vidya Pratishthan, the trust.
The High Court adjourned the hearing to June 23, issuing a notice to the state government.
Jyotiram Jadhav, a local farmer has filed a petition against Sharad Pawar’s trust alleging that Pune district collector and the state government did not follow the rules while allotting the land. They did not call for applications from the public at large for allotment or hold an auction. The land is located within the limits of Waghalwadi village, near Baramati in Pune and was allotted to the trust on January 23, 2009. Petitioner contends that Pune collector has no power to allot any land valued at more than Rs 2.50 lakh. In this case, the land measures more than two hectares and its value was estimated to be more than Rs 2.5 lakh.
The division bench headed by Justices Abhay Oka said such a land cannot be allotted for any other purpose. The justice asked the state government that under which rule it was given to Vidya Pratishthan, the trust.