Maharashtra to prosecute multiple allotees of flats under Chief Minister's quota

MUMBAI: People who have secured multiple flats from the chief minister's discretionary quota on the basis of false declaration about not owning a house will now face prosecution, Maharashtra government told the Bombay High Court today.

The government also informed a bench headed by Justice Abhay Oak about rescinding its decision to withdraw prosecution against double allottees if they surrendered one of the houses or, in case the flats had been sold, return the proceeds to the government equivalent to market value of the property.

The government's decisions were communicated to the court through an affidavit filed by S K Salimath, Deputy Secretary of the Urban Development Department.

The affidavit, however, said the government had recently accepted an August 30, 2010 letter written on by Apoorva Javadekar, son of Union Minister Prakash Javdekar, offering to surrender a flat allotted to him under CM's discretionary quota.

The court was hearing a PIL filed by former journalist Ketan Tirodkar challenging double or multiple allotment of houses from the CM's quota.

The bench asked the government to file by June 23 a report confirming compliance of its order passed on March 20 by which it had struck down the policy for allotment of houses to the beneficiaries under CM's quota.

Describing the policy as "illegal, irrational and unfair", the court had asked the state to frame a new policy which should be transparent and fair.

The bench had also restrained the state from making further allotments from the CM's quota under the policy struck down by the court.

Government pleader J P Yagnik today informed the bench that the state had stopped making further allotments under the CM's discretionary quota as directed by the court.