PUNE, 7 NOV. Former Member of Parliament and Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana leader Raju Shetti has leveled serious allegations regarding the land purchase deal involving Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s son, Parth Pawar.

Shetti claimed that Parth Pawar's company purchased land valued at Rs 1,800 crore for only Rs 300 crore, asserting that this constitutes a major scam. He stated that the land is likely 'Class 2' land, and had it been sold through a proper tender process, the government would have received better revenue and a suitable buyer. Instead, he alleged, the transaction was completed in extreme haste and involved the evasion of stamp duty.

Shetti demanded a thorough inquiry into the matter, to be conducted by a retired judge. He directly targeted Ajit Pawar, stating, "Do not assume that this [scam] will be digested just because the Rs 70,000 crore [irrigation] scam was digested."

He also expressed surprise at the speed of the transaction, questioning how the entire deal was completed in just 27 days, given that official permissions for even small land parcels usually take a significant amount of time through the bureaucracy.

The former MP also criticized the government's approach to assessing farmers' losses, referring to it as a "farce" and demanding that such practices be stopped.

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