Taking exception to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR naming Ashok Chavan as one of the accused in the Adarsh Housing scam, about 30 Congress legislators on Friday demanded that the investigating agency should not be allowed to proceed with its probe.
The legislators met Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan to show their solidarity with the former chief minister and argued that the CBI inquiry was uncalled for, especially when the state government had appointed a two-member panel under the Commission of Inquiry Act to probe the scam.
The legislators, including former ministers Subhash Jhanak, Vijay Wadettiwar and Abdul Sattar, said the central agency should stop investigations till a competent authority takes a decision on the title of the land on which the 31-storey building has come up.
Ashok Chavan had earlier met the group of legislators at Sattar’s residence, where they decided to rally behind him and claimed he would come out clean.
A former minister, who was present at the luncheon meeting, told Business Standard: “ What is the need for a CBI inquiry? The state government has already filed an affidavit before the Bombay High Court saying the CBI inquiry was not required. However, the court is yet to give its ruling in this regard. How can CBI confirm criminal conspiracy when the competent authority is yet to decide the title of the land?”
“If there are two different outcomes from the separate inquiries by the CBI and the two-member commission, then what would happen?” he argued.
According to sources, Prithviraj Chavan gave a patient hearing to Ashok Chavan’s supporters. State party chief Manikrao Thackeray earlier said the law would take its own course and clarified that the CBI’s move to file an FIR against Ashok Chavan will improve the party’s image in the state.
