Virbhadra govt orders restoration of land lease to Ramdev trust

IN A U-turn from its 2013 cabinet decision to cancel the land lease granted by the previous BJP government to Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Yogpeeth, the Himachal Pradesh government Friday decided to restore it to the trust.

Thedecisionwastakenduringamarathon cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. “The Cabinet gave its approval for restoration of lease of government land to Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust, Haridwar,forestablishingabranchofyogaand Ayurveda-related medical science research and health tourism and production of herbal medicinal plants at Kalhog (Kandaghat), Solan,” said a government spokesperson.

Later, the government issued a statement, saying that the cabinet took the decision considering the request of Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust. However, to get the possession of the land back, the trust will be required to withdraw a petition it filed in the state High Court in 2013 to challenge the cabinet ‘s “unilateral action”. The high court had stayed government action at the facility.

The land, measuring 96.3 bigha, is located at Sadhupul, near Kandaghat in Solan district. It was alloted to the trust in 2011 on a 99-year lease at a token money of Rs 1 per annum. The total amount payable by the trust as per the lease agreement was Rs 17 lakh.

Soon after it came to power, the Congress government scrapped the lease, alleging serious irregularities. The government also ordered a vigilance probe, questioning the role of some officials in allotting the land, allegedly in violation of rules.

Three days ago, the Chief Minister had claimedthatnothingirregularhasbeenfound in the allotment of the land to Ramdev’s trust.

The land in question originally belonged to the erstwhile royal family of Patiala which later donated it to the Punjab government for developing it into a children’s park and camping site.