Trouble for Robert Vadra? Haryana govt may form panel to probe his land deals in state

CHANDIGARH: The Congress came out in support of party president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra after the BJP government in Haryana said it will set up a high-level panel to probe his land deals in the state.

The Haryana government is in the final stage of setting up a panel, which, according to reports, is expected to be headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Swatanter Kumar. "We are surely going ahead with forming a commission to look into all the land deals, if we spot any abberation, the panel will look into it. Right now the commission is in the formative stage," said BJP's Haryana in-charge and national general secretary Anil Jain.

Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge played it down as pressure tactics. "These kind of tactics won't work on us. If there is truth to it let them bring it out, why make statements?" he told Times Now. Party spokesperson PC Chacko said there was nothing new in the charges levelled by the state government.

Former Haryana chief minister BS Hooda, who has also been named by the BJP, said there was nothing illegal in the Vadra deals.

Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij, however, was confident about the probe initiated against "Rahul Gandhi's suited-booted brother-in-law". " When will it happen, who will do it, only CM Khattar will take a call on it," Vij said.

In March, CAG in its report had said that the Hooda government granted "undue favours" to builders, including Vadra's firm, Skylight Hospitality.

Congress has insisted that the CAG report tabled in the Haryana House has neither indicted the former Congress government of Haryana or Robert Vadra or his Skylight Hospitality Private Limited for any violation of the Haryana Development and Regulation of Urban Areas Act, 1975, or any rules or policy. Vadra's company, Skylight Hospitality, sold a prime 3.5 acre piece of land in Manesar in Gurgaon district to DLF in 2008 for Rs 58 crore. The land had, however, only cost his company around Rs 15 crore and was sold to DLF after obtaining change of land use (CLU) and other permissions from the Hooda government.