Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday said that his son Parth Pawar and his business partner were not aware that a land parcel in Pune their company had agreed to purchase belonged to the government, and the deal that sparked a row has now been cancelled, PTI reported.

The controversy centres on the sale of about 40 acres of land in Pune’s Koregaon Park, allegedly purchased by Amadea Enterprises LLP, a firm co-owned by Parth Pawar, The Indian Express reported.

The land, classified as Mahar Watan land, was historically granted to the Mahar Scheduled Caste community. Such land cannot be sold without the state government’s permission.

The Opposition has alleged that the land, valued at about Rs 1,800 crore, was sold to the company for Rs 300 crore, with a stamp duty waiver reportedly granted within 48 hours of the deal.

The original valuation put the payable stamp duty at Rs 21 crore, The Print reported.

On Friday, Ajit Pawar said on social media that the agreement was preliminary and no financial transaction had taken place. He added that no land has been taken into possession.

He said that the land belongs to the government and cannot be sold, PTI reported.

“Parth and his partner Digvijay Patil were not aware of this fact,” he said. “How the registration [of the sale] was done and who is responsible will come out in the probe…”

The deputy chief minister said that as per the information he has, the authorities had not been pressured to transfer the land to Parth Pawar’s company, PTI reported.

The first information report named three persons including Digvijay Patil, but not Parth Pawar, because the three individuals had visited the registrar’s office to sign the documents, Ajit Pawar added.

“A thorough investigation of the said matter will be conducted through the government-appointed committee, and whatever the truth may be, it will come to light,” the deputy chief minister said. “If anyone is found guilty, appropriate legal action will be taken.”

Ajit Pawar said that he had always worked within the framework of the law and transparency.

The deputy chief minister added that neither he nor his office was involved in the matter. “No assistance, intervention or telephonic communication in this regard has been made by me or through my office,” Ajit Pawar stated.

The state government has suspended a tehsildar and a sub-registrar over the allegations, PTI reported.

On Thursday, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis ordered a probe into the allegations of irregularities in the land deal. Fadnavis told reporters that he has sought details from the revenue and land records departments, and directed that an inquiry be conducted.

The matter that had come to light appeared to be serious, he said.

“Our coalition government believes in transparency, so this matter will be investigated to determine whether there are any irregularities, and if so, strict action will be taken,” Fadnavis added.

On Thursday, PTI quoted Ajit Pawar as saying that the chief minister “should definitely probe this” and that “it is his right”.

“I am not even remotely connected to this [land deal],” the deputy chief minister was quoted as saying. “When your children grow up, they do their own business.”

The Opposition had criticised Ajit Pawar over the allegations, with Congress leader Harshwardhan Sapkal demanding that he resign.

In 2019, Parth Pawar had unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha elections from the Maval constituency on the ticket of the undivided Nationalist Congress Party.

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