Court sets aside Governor’s nod for Chavan prosecution

SANCTION COULD not be “sustained” since it was not based on any fresh evidence produced by the CBI

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Friday got a major relief from the Bombay High Court -- the sanction granted by Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao in 2016 to the CBI for prosecution of the Congress leader in the Adarsh housing scam has been quashed.

The Division Bench of Justices Ranjit More and Sadhana Jadhav held that the sanction granted by the Governor could not be “sustained” since it was not based on any fresh material produced by the CBI, which could be considered as plausible “evidence” by the court during trial.

“It was permissible for Governor Rao — the sanctioning authority -- to review or reconsider the earlier decision of the erstwhile Governor K Sankaranarayanan to not grant sanction to prosecute the petitioner on fresh material which had surfaced after the earlier sanction was refused,” the Bench said.

The CBI had claimed to have got some fresh material after the earlier sanction was refused; however it failed to present any fresh evidence. “…The CBI failed to present any fresh material that is capable of being converted into evidence that can be substantiated at the time of trial. Therefore, in the absence of fresh material, the sanction cannot be sustained, and is quashed and set aside,’’ the bench said.

The bench was hearing a petition filed by Chavan challenging a decision of Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao granting sanction to the CBI to prosecute him in the housing society scam.

Chavan is among the 14 people named in the scam, which includes retired and serving defence personnel, bureaucrats, and politicians. He has been accused by the CBI of misuse of his office, especially the approval given to additional floor space index for the Adarsh society in return for flats for his relatives.

The CBI had proceeded with the case against Chavan for offences of criminal conspiracy and cheating under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, and under various provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Chavan had challenged the above sanction alleging that it was politically motivated and that there was no additional material warranting review of the decision.

The CBI, however, had denied the charge and cited as fresh material the findings of the report of a judicial commission set up to inquire into the Adarsh scam. It had also cited a previous single bench order of the High Court that had rejected Chavan’s plea seeking that his name be removed from the list of the accused in the case.

The Division Bench, however, held in Friday’s judgment that neither the judicial committee’s report, nor the single bench’s order, were capable of being converted into credible evidence.

The bench also rejected the CBI counsel Hiten Venegaonkar’s argument that the validity of the Governor’s sanction against Chavan could only be tested in a trial court.

Venegaonkar had earlier urged the High Court to dismiss Chavan’s plea arguing that granting relief on his plea would amount to his acquittal and it would render the entire probe futile.

Congress president Sanjay Nirupam has claimed that like 2G, Adarsh was never a scam and alleged that it was a ploy of the BJP to malign the party.