Maharashtra: Opposition wants Sattar sacked over corruption charges

Abdul Sattar has assured of responding to the allegations in the house on Tuesday. File pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

A week after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde faced corruption charges, the Opposition levelled graft charges against Agriculture Minister Abdul Sattar and demanded he be sacked. Leader of the Opposition Ajit Pawar raised the matter in the Assembly on Monday and Ambadas Danve took it up in the upper house.

In the first allegation, Sattar has been accused of allotting grazing land of 37 acres to a private person. "The Bombay High Court has passed strictures against Sattar because the allotment is illegal. The land costs Rs 150 crore. There is evidence against the minister," Pawar added.

"The minister has misused his office despite knowing the Supreme Court and state government decisions. If he doesn't resign, he should be sacked from the cabinet," Pawar demanded. The case is related to Sattar's tenure as minister of state for revenue in the MVA government. He has quasi judicial powers to decide the appeal. Some people had challenged the minister's verdict in the Nagpur bench of the high court which stayed the order on December 22.

In the second allegation, Pawar said that Sattar had extorted money in the name of organising an agricultural festival. Danve said that the employees of the agriculture department were given a target to collect a huge amount of money for a private event held in Sillod in Aurangabad district. The Opposition stalled the house for the day.

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Dy CM assures probe

In the Assembly, deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis assured of a probe in the allegations over the agricultural festival. CM Shinde told reporters in Delhi that information will be collected in the matters related not only to Sattar but Opposition leaders as well. "People who speak should first collect proper information (before levelling allegations)," he said. Sattar assured to respond to the allegations in the house on Tuesday.

In another matter in the council, independent MLA from Muktainagar Chandrakant Patil alleged that former Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse had misused his office to allot a plot of land that has minor minerals worth hundreds of crores of rupees. Revenue Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil said a SIT led by a divisional commissioner will investigate the charge.

Walkout against suspension

The MVA walked out of the Assembly on Monday seeking revocation of senior member Jayant Patil's suspension. Fadnavis assured the house of discussing the demand with the CM.