Kanhaiyalal Gidwani, main accused in the Adarsh society scam, passed away at the Breach Candy hospital here following cardiac arrest. “He suffered a heart attack three days ago and also suffered brain haemorrhage. He was put on ventilator but passed away early on Tuesday morning,” a close family friend told The Hindu .
Official sources said his death would not affect the ongoing cases in any manner, except that he would not be charge-sheeted anymore.
Mr. Gidwani, former Congress member and ex-MLC, was charge-sheeted by the Central Bureau of Investigation in the Adarsh scam on July 4. He was charged under Sections 120B, 420, 467, 471 of the Indian Penal Code, Sections 13(2) read with 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and Section 3 of the Benami Transaction (Prohibition) Act, 1988.
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The CBI alleged that the accused in the Adarsh scam — all prominent politicians, high-level bureaucrats and Army officers — abused their official position, manipulated and fabricated the records to achieve their objective of getting the land allotted in favour of the Adarsh Co-operative Group Housing Society in an illegal manner and illegally managed various clearances from the municipal and State government authorities.
The accused, in return, obtained flats for themselves and their relatives in the 31-storey building.
Mr. Gidwani, the then influential Congress functionary and a Society office-bearer, was accused of playing a key role in getting flats allotted in favour of the public servants who dealt with the file. He and his family members own at least three flats in the Society. He was interrogated on suspicion of having at least four more benami flats there.
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The charge sheet alleged that Mr. Gidwani was one of the two main accused who entered into a criminal conspiracy to get the land on which the Society came into being.
Mr. Gidwani was named in two cases which were investigated by the CBI. While one is the Adarsh scam in which he was charge-sheeted with 12 others, the other is a case related to alleged bribing of a CBI official for watering down charges against him.