Ajit Pawar terms son Parth’s Pune land deal “beyond understanding,” orders probe

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Saturday described the land transaction in Pune involving his son Parth Pawar as ldquocompletely beyond understandingrdquo and said it should not have occurred He added that a detailed investigation has been ordered into the matterAccording to the news agency PTI the controversy pertains to the sale of 40 acres of governmentowned land in Punersquos Mundhwa area to Amadea Enterprises LLP a firm associated with Parth Pawar The deal has drawn criticism for allegedly undervaluing the property and evading stamp dutyThis transaction should not have happened at all When we looked at the documents the first question that came to mind was how did the registrar even process this transaction It was completely beyond our understanding Pawar said while addressing a press conference in Pune reported PTIHe said that as soon as the matter came to his attention he instructed officials to conduct a proper and impartial investigation regardless of who was involvedAs soon as the matter came to my attention I immediately said that no matter who is involved a proper and thorough investigation should be conducted he saidPawar who has served for over three decades in public life said he has faced several unsubstantiated allegations over the years often surfacing before electionsIn my 35 years in politics several allegations have been made against me though none have ever been proven However I have faced a lot of defamation Usually such allegations come up just before elections and once elections are over they fade away he said reported PTIThe Deputy CM confirmed that the state government has taken the issue seriouslyThe Chief Minister has decided that a detailed probe must be conducted in accordance with the rules In this case an FIR has already been filed against three people including a Tehsildar from the state government The police have started their investigation and raids have also been conducted he addedThe Maharashtra Deputy CM said he had absolutely no information about the Pune land deal involving his son and would have rejected it if it had come to his notice earlierBefore anyone carries out a transaction opinions of specialists are always taken and legal advice is taken I had absolutely no information about this deal if I had known I would have refused it outright Pawar told reporters in PuneHe denied that any political pressure was being applied to him and reiterated that a formal inquiry was already underwayI do not at all feel that any political pressure is being applied to me See Chandrashekhar Bawankules statement he clearly stated that action has been taken against those involved in this deal and against those who went to the registrars office and signed There are three such people A committee of senior officers has been formed to address this matter they have one month to submit their report As soon as the report comes things will become crystal clear he saidPawar said he had issued strict instructions to the administration not to ignore anyone who attempts to misuse his name for illegal activityI have given direct instructions to the administration if anyone whether known to me or from nearby circles tries to use my name to create pressure or to get anything illegal done do not comply with them at all Do not yield to any pressure I have always been a rule follower and I will continue to do so he addedResponding to questions about whether he had spoken to his son Parth about the controversy the Deputy CM said About speaking to Parth I was in Mumbai and continuously busy today I am in Pune I will return to Mumbai on Monday and ask him about this matterHe also advised caution in such matters saying You should also learn something from this case because people learn new things from experience This matter is also very recent he has just started In the future even if a trusted person asks you to do something like this consult technical experts and specialists at least once before entering into any such dealThe Opposition has called for a judicial inquiry citing irregularities in the transaction Ajit Pawar has distanced himself from the deal claiming he has no connection to itAccording to the complaint filed by Santosh Ashok Hingane Deputy District Registrar the accused Sheetal Kishanchand Tejwani Digvijay Amarsingh Patil and suspended SubRegistrar Ravindra Balkrishna Taru allegedly conspired to evade stamp duty worth Rs six crore during the registration of a sale deed for land in Survey No 88 Mouje MundhwaDespite official communication from the district administration dated May 9 2025 directing payment of Rs 589 crore in stamp duty the sale deed was executed without collecting the mandatory amount The alleged act resulted in a significant financial loss to the states exchequerThe FIR has been filed under Sections 3165 3182 and 35 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita BNS 2023 read with Section 59 of the Maharashtra Stamp ActThe Inspector General of Registration in Pune submitted an interim report to the Additional Chief Secretary in Mumbai on the alleged land scamWith PTI inputs