Ajit Pawar re-inducted as Dy CM of Maharashtra

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar was on Friday sworn in as deputy chief minister of Maharashtra in the Prithviraj Chavan-led council of ministers. Governor K Sankaranarayanan administered the oath of office and secrecy at a function held at the historic Darbar Hall of the Raj Bhavan. Pawar, who had resigned on September 25 as deputy chief minister following allegations of his involvement in an alleged multi-crore irrigation scam, was re-inducted at a time when five petitions against him are pending in various courts.

NCP defended Pawar’s re-entry into the Cabinet on grounds that the much-debated White Paper on the state’s irrigation sector has already given a clean chit to him, and clarified there was no scam in the implementation of irrigation projects, involving an expenditure of Rs 70,000 crore during 1999-2009.

 

The opposition — Shiv Sena, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena — boycotted the swearing-in ceremony. More trouble over his induction is expected during the coming winter session of the legislative assembly in Nagpur.

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Friday said a no-confidence motion would be moved against the Congress-NCP government.

BJP said the White Paper that cleared Pawar of corruption charges had been prepared by the irrigation department, held by his own party. The BJP insisted that Pawar faces the special investigation team probing the scam.

Pawar countered the opposition’s attack. He told Business Standard it was wrong to say he had influenced the probe and that the White Paper was issued to benefit him. The White Paper was prepared after going into all aspects of the matter, Pawar added.