The two-member Adarsh judicial commission has summoned the former Maharashtra Chief Minister, Ashok Chavan, to appear before it on May 23 for recording his statement.
The decision was taken at a joint meeting here, N. N. Kumbhar, secretary of the commission, told The Hindu on Friday. It has already summoned Shivajirao Nilangekar-Patil, former Maharashtra Revenue Minister; and Sunil Tatkare, former Minister of State for Urban Development department, to remain present before it on May 21 and 22 respectively.
After the Adarsh Housing Society scandal broke out, Mr. Chavan had to resign as Chief Minister. It is alleged that as Revenue Minister, he proposed to include civilians in the society here, which was earlier meant for family members of the defence services.
The CBI has accused him of entering into a conspiracy with an ulterior motive of getting flats for his relatives. “Shri Ashok Chavan, while functioning as Chief Minister in July 2009, gave the society a concession of 15 per cent Recreation Ground (RG), which wasn't allowed earlier by the government, and in turn got membership for his close relatives, and thus abused his official position, and favoured certain people in society,” says the FIR filed by the CBI.
But Mr. Chavan filed an affidavit last year, denying that he recommended inclusion of civilians in the society reserved for armed forces personnel.
The commission has already arrived at a conclusion that the society was not reserved for defence personnel. The commission, mandated to present its findings on 12 terms of reference, has already submitted a final report on ownership and reservation of land.
