Adarsh scam: Chavan to appear before judicial panel

New Delhi: Ashok Chavan is all set to appear before the judicial panel probing the Adarsh Scam on Saturday, becoming the third former Maharashtra Chief Minister to do so.

Chavan had on May 23 sought exemption to appear as a witness before the two-member commission probing the Adarsh housing scam. He had been forced to resign in 2010 after the scam came to light. The CBI says it was Chavan who first proposed the inclusion of civilians in the housing society.

His deposition assumes greater significance as his predecessor Vilasrao Deshmukh on Thursday blamed Chavan who was Revenue Minister during his tenure for the controversial allotments.

Vilasrao had said that although the letter of intent was signed by him as Chief Minister, it was done only because the departments concerned, revenue and finance, had cleared it.

The Revenue minister at the time was Chavan, while Jayant Patil was the finance minister during Deshmukh's tenure.

HOwever, former Maharashtra chief minister Shinde had on Monday blamed Deshmukh and another former state chief minister Ashok Chavan of clearing the Adarsh files.

Seeking to wash his hands off the Adarsh scam, Shinde had told the panel that the decision to allot government land and grant of additional FSI to the housing society was taken when Deshmukh was the chief minister.

Both Shinde and Deshmukh had handled files pertaining to the controversial society during their stint as Maharashtra chief minister.

Chavan had filed an affidavit last year giving details about whatever knowledge he had about the Adarsh Society. The former chief minister's affidavit clearly states his limited actions in respect of Adarsh society and his limited role in the decision making process under the guidance of the bureaucrats.

While seeking exemption, Chavan had argued that he was not called for deposition when the Commission had decided the two issues pertaining to ownership of Adarsh building land and whether it was reserved for war widows or their families. As such, he was not required for other issues also, had he argued.