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The controversy over the Pune land deal involving Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s son, Parth Pawar, continues to deepen as officials confirmed that Amadea Enterprises LLP, co-owned by Parth and his cousin Digvijay Patil, will have to pay double stamp duty, around Rs 42 crore, to cancel the sale deed of the disputed 40-acre land in Pune’s upscale Mundhwa area. Fadnavis says action will be taken as per law Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday maintained that the government would act strictly in accordance with the law and that there was “no question of saving anybody.” Responding to criticism that the FIR did not name Parth Pawar, Fadnavis said, “Those who don’t even understand what an FIR is are the ones making baseless allegations. The FIR has been filed against the company and its authorised signatories.” FIRs have been registered against Digvijay Patil, Shital Tejwani (who represented the land’s 272 owners through a power of attorney), and sub-registrar R B Taru for alleged cheating and misappropriation. Firm must pay Rs 42 crore to cancel deal According to the Department of Registration and Stamps, Amadea Enterprises had earlier claimed a 7% stamp duty exemption, equivalent to Rs 21 crore, by citing plans to build a data centre on the land. The firm must now not only pay the original 7% duty but also an additional 7% to execute the cancellation deed. Officials said the deed would only be cancelled once the dues are paid in full. The Joint Sub Registrar, A P Fulaware, confirmed that the document must be “duly stamped” before cancellation can proceed. Sharad Pawar supports probe NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar, the uncle of Ajit Pawar and granduncle of Parth, expressed support for a probe into the deal, saying the Chief Minister should “put all facts before the public.” He distanced himself from comments made by his daughter Supriya Sule, who had said she did not believe Parth would do anything wrong. “That could be her view,” Pawar said, adding, “Administration, politics, and family are different.” Opposition seeks white paper Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal demanded the government issue a white paper on major land transactions in Pune and Mumbai and hold a day-long discussion during the upcoming winter session of the legislature. The deal, initially valued at Rs 300 crore, has raised questions about alleged collusion and misuse of government land, turning what began as a real estate transaction into a full-blown political storm in Maharashtra.
