PUNE: Anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare on Friday said that if the children of ministers are involved in any wrongdoing, it is the ministers themselves who should be held accountable. His remarks come in the wake of a controversial land deal involving a firm co-owned by the son of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.
The veteran social activist, who has led several major anti-corruption movements in the past, demanded strict government action if irregularities are found in the Rs 300 crore deal concerning state-owned land in Pune, which is currently under investigation.
“It is really unfortunate. If the children of ministers are involved in wrongdoing, it is the ministers who should be blamed. What matters most are values, values that come from families. All such incidents occur due to a lack of moral values,” Hazare said.
He was speaking to reporters in his native village, Ralegan Siddhi, in the adjoining Ahilyanagar district.
“The government should introduce policy decisions and take strong measures to prevent such incidents. Strict action must be taken against those found guilty of irregularities,” Hazare asserted.
Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar said in Mumbai that his son Parth and his business partner were unaware that the Pune land purchased by their company belonged to the government. He added that the controversial transaction has since been cancelled.
A government-appointed committee probing the land deal will submit its report within a month, Pawar told reporters after meeting Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
On Thursday, after the deal first made headlines, Pawar, who holds the finance and planning portfolio, clarified that he had absolutely no involvement in the transaction.