5 months ago
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A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad connected Tuesday (December 16, 2025) reserved its bid connected a transgression nationalist involvement litigation (PIL) seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into alleged irregularities successful the Lavasa elevation presumption task successful Pune district.
The PIL, filed by advocator Nanasaheb Vasantrao Jadhav, names erstwhile Union Minister Sharad Pawar, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, and Baramati MP Supriya Sule, among others, alleging the assistance of amerciable permissions, misuse of nationalist resources, and ample gross losses done stamp work exemptions and onshore allotments.
Appearing successful person, Mr. Jadhav argued that the petition was maintainable contempt earlier proceedings. He told the Bench, “The PIL had not been dismissed earlier, but was lone held to beryllium mis-constituted, and truthful remained maintainable,” citing the Supreme Court’s ruling successful State of Uttarakhand vs. Balwant Singh Chaupal to accent that “genuine PILs raising issues of nationalist value should not beryllium rejected connected method grounds.”
The petitioner besides relied connected judgments successful State of West Bengal vs. Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights and Subrata Chattoraj vs. Union of India to reason that High Courts person wide powers nether Article 226 to nonstop a CBI probe successful cases involving superior allegations and nonaccomplishment of section agencies.
The petition alleges that permissions nether Section 63(1A) of the Bombay Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act were illegally granted to Lavasa Corporation for purchasing cultivation land, contempt determination being nary proviso for elevation presumption improvement astatine the time. It claimed the scam was “preplanned” and progressive Yashomala Leasing and Finance Pvt. Ltd. merging with Lavasa Corporation without mandatory permissions, allegedly nether Sharad Pawar’s influence.
The PIL states that Supriya Sule and her hubby Sadanand Sule received shares successful Lavasa pursuing the merger, portion Ajit Pawar, arsenic Irrigation Minister and Maharashtra Krishna vale Development Corporation (MKVDC) chairman, approved leases and permissions that violated statutory norms.
The PIL claimed that the Lavasa project, dispersed crossed 18 villages successful Mulshi and Velhe talukas, has remained unresolved for implicit a decade, during which farmers mislaid their livelihoods arsenic cultivation onshore became unfit for cultivation. It stated that compensation paid to farmers was inadequate and that, with the close to spot nary longer being a cardinal right, susceptible landowners had small ineligible recourse.
The petitioner besides highlighted that complaints filed since December 2018 with Pune Police and Pune Rural Police were not acted upon. “Replies nether RTI stated the substance did not autumn wrong their jurisdiction,” Mr. Jadhav said, adding that section agencies failed to enactment for astir 5 years, leaving him with nary enactment but to question tribunal directions for a CBI probe.
Citing a Comptroller and Auditor General study and a People’s Commission of Inquiry report, the petitioner alleged losses moving into hundreds of crores. The PIL claims that notifications issued successful 2001 and 2002 allowed Lavasa to debar paying crores successful stamp duty, contempt the task being commercialized successful nature.
It further alleged that astir 141.15 hectares of MKVDC onshore were leased to Lavasa for 30 years without tenders, and permissions were granted to conception 8 bandharas in the Mose valley. The Urban Development Department allegedly appointed Lavasa arsenic a Special Planning Authority nether the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, which the PIL described arsenic “first of its kind” and contrary to law. The petitioner stated that this SPA presumption was aboriginal withdrawn by the BJP–Shiv Sena authorities successful 2017, acknowledging that the assignment was irregular.
To warrant maintainability contempt delay, the petitioner argued that “crime ne'er dies” and cited Japani Sahoo vs. Chandra Sekhar Mohanty, stating that specified hold cannot decision transgression proceedings. The PIL besides seeks directions for the lawsuit to beryllium tried successful a fast-track CBI tribunal and for periodic presumption reports to beryllium filed earlier the High Court.
The tribunal besides considered 2 involution applications but indicated that it was not inclined to let them astatine this stage. One application, filed by Sharad Pawar, sought impleadment, arguing that the petitioner suppressed facts and that the PIL was barred by constructive res judicata. Mr. Pawar’s plea stated, “The full premise connected which the ailment is filed has been adjudicated upon successful 2018 and is besides successful contented earlier the Supreme Court by mode of an SLP. Therefore, the contiguous petition styled arsenic ‘Criminal PIL’ is not maintainable.” The exertion added that helium is “neither a projected accused nor an accused and has each close to beryllium heard earlier immoderate bid is passed.”
Another exertion by Mursalin Shaikh invoked Section 340 of the Criminal Procedure Code, seeking initiation of prosecution against Mr. Pawar for perjury and deliberate contempt, alleging that helium filed a mendacious and misleading affidavit to mislead the judiciary. The exertion cited aggregate IPC provisions and the Contempt of Courts Act and sought exemplary costs on with prosecution.
The substance has been reserved for judgment.
