The complainant in a case of bribery involving Maharashtra Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse has demanded that the Anti-Corruption Bureau make public the audiotapes that allegedly contain conversations naming the Minister’s aide and an apparent reference to Mr. Khadse himself.
Ramesh Jadhav, an economist and entrepreneur, had sought revenue land near Kalyan in Thane district for opening an educational institute. He was asked Rs. 30 crore in bribe by Gajanan Patil, who claimed to be a close aide of Mr. Khadse.
On a complaint from Dr. Jadhav, the ACB recorded the conversations between Mr. Patil and Mr. Jadhav at six meetings.
Access denied
“Despite being the complainant, I have been denied access to these audiotapes. When I asked the officers for a copy of the audiotapes, they rejected my plea,” Mr. Jadhav told The Hindu .
Putting the audiotapes in the public domain would help to make the probe transparent, he argued.
Mr. Khadse has denied the charges and ruled out his resignation.
Why secrecy over probe?
Mr. Jadhav questioned the secrecy over the investigation. “Is it because of the involvement of the Minister? He should have resigned immediately, given that two of his aides are named in those conversations. It won’t be possible to conduct a free and fair investigation until he resigns,” he said.
After the ACB rejected his plea for security, Mr. Jadhav has hired a private security guard for himself.
