Adarsh Housing Society scam: CBI records Sushil Kumar Shinde's statement

NEW DELHI: CBI on Sunday recorded the statement of Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde as a witness in the Adarsh Housing Society scam. A CBI contingent arrived from Mumbai to register his evidence.

Shinde was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra when the files relating to the controversial high-rise apartment, located in the plush Colaba area of south Mumbai, were processed.

Shinde had accepted the proposal sent by Ashok Chavan, who was then Revenue Minister, recommending that 40% of flats in the proposed society be allotted to non-Army members. The society was originally meant for relatives of Kargil war martyrs. Chavan later became the chief minister.

Largest number of clearances for the Adarsh Housing Society took place during Shinde's tenure as chief minister, between January 2003 and November 2004. This included the dubious environmental clearance in 2003, which has now been challenged by the Union Environment Ministry. Shinde also held the portfolio of the Urban Development Department when the clearance was issued to the Adarsh Housing Society. Land was allotted to the project in 2004. Shinde, however, in his affidavit submitted to the Adarsh Commission, denied any involvement in the entire controversy.

The CBI, sources said, was likely to record the statement of another Union Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, who was another chief minister of Maharashtra when the Adarsh files were processed.

In January this year, CBI had registered a case against 14 persons, including Chavan, who was quit as chief minister last November after reports about the scam surfaced, retired army officials and government officials on the charges of criminal conspiracy, fraud and misuse of official powers. It was alleged that three relatives of Chavan had flats in the high-rise apartment.

In May, CBI had told the Bombay High Court that there was no prima facie evidence linking Deshmukh and Shinde to the scam. A PIL had sought probe against the two ministers.

CBI has so far questioned several accused, including former Mumbai corporation commissioner Jairaj Phatak, Congress leader KL Gidwani, suspended state information commissioner Ramanand Tiwari, former deputy secretary of state in the urban development department PV Deshmukh and Adarsh Society's secretary RC Thakur.