Bombay HC Questions Govt Over Parth Pawar’s Role In Mundhwa Land Deal, Grants Tehsildar Anticipatory Bail

In a recent ruling, the Bombay High Court has questioned the Maharashtra government's handling of the controversial Mundhwa land deal, specifically focusing on the role of Parth Pawar, son of Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar. The court expressed concern that Pawar, who holds a 99% stake in the firm responsible for purchasing the government-owned land, has not been treated as a beneficiary in the transaction.

Judge Madhav Jamdar posed this question while granting anticipatory bail to Pune Tehsildar Suryakant Yewale, who has been accused of using his position to facilitate the deal. During the investigation, Digvijay Patil, with a mere 1% stake in the firm, was named as an accused, despite the court's apparent silence on Pawar's involvement.

The court has requested the Maharashtra Director General of Police (DGP) to conduct a more professional and detailed investigation into the matter. The Bombay High Court's inquiry comes as the Mundhwa Land Deal comes under increasing scrutiny. The deal, which involved the sale of a 40-acre parcel of land for approximately Rs 300 crore, has raised questions about its legality and the lack of proper approvals.

Furthermore, the firm allegedly avoided paying around Rs 21 crore in stamp duty. The Pune civil court recently ordered the cancellation of the sale deed. Parth Pawar serves as a director in the firm, M/s Ameida Enterprises LLP. Despite Yewale's denial of any wrongdoing, his legal counsel argued that he had only acted in his official capacity, without any illegal considerations.

The court, however, acknowledged that Yewale had not abused interim protection from arrest previously granted to him, and thus, granted him anticipatory bail contingent on his cooperation with the ongoing investigation.