Even as the Maharashtra government has initiated an enquiry into the >alleged force-feeding by a Shiv Sena MP at the Maharashtra Sadan in Delhi recently, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday demanded that the probe be extended to the “circumstances” that triggered the incident.
The facilities at the Maharashtra Sadan are so poor that even senior Congress and Nationalist Congress Party leaders, including Chief Minister Prithivraj Chavan, have rejected it, BJP MP Kirit Somaiya said. The BJP leader, who is the Chairman of the House Committee, which decides on allocation of residential premises to newly elected MPs, alleged corruption in the Maharashtra Sadan
“The new premises are not worth living as it lacks basic amenities. None of the Congress and NCP MPs have spent even a single night at the Sadan,” he said.
Mr. Somaiya claimed that the ‘occupancy ratio’ of the Maharashtra Sadan was only 10 per cent.
“The incident [force-feeding] was regrettable. The CM has called for an enquiry into the incident. But we would also urge him to look into the circumstances behind the incident and take action,” Mr. Somaiya told reporters here.
He said that PAC had reported Rs. 6,500 crore worth irregularities in the construction of the existing Maharashtra Sadan and alleged that it was inaugurated hurriedly in 2013 by PWD minister Chaggan Bhujbal to merely financially benefit a contractor.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari accused the Congress and the NCP of using the force-feeding episode to malign the image of the BPJ-Sena combine.
