ACB registers FIR against Chhagan Bhujbal, kin in Maharashtra Sadan case

MUMBAI:Troubles for senior NCP leader and former PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal continue to grow as the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau on Thursday filed yet another first information report (FIR) against him in the Maharashtra Sadan case.

The ACB registered the case against Bhujbal, his son Pankaj, nephew Sameer and 16 others which include some top former and current IAS officers. Bhujbal is accused of inflating the cost of building the Maharashtra Sadan, a state government guest house in Delhi. In 2006, the estimated cost of the project was Rs. 52 crore, which subsequently shot up to Rs. 150 crore. It is alleged that the contractor who got the project sub-contracted the work to firms controlled by Bhujbal's son Pankaj and nephew Sameer. There were also allegations that the furniture used in Maharashtra Sadan were ordered from a firm that belonged to Bhujbal's family.

The ACB had on Monday filed an FIR against Bhujbal and five other current and former government officials for leasing out government land in Mumbai to a real estate company for 99 years. The real estate firm was asked to pay just Rs. 1 per square metre for the plot. Allegedly, the real estate company later transferred funds to a foundation owned by the Bhujbals.