Pune Court Denies Anticipatory Bail To Tehsildar In Mundhwa Land Case

Suryakant Yeole, a suspended tehsildar involved in the controversial Mundhwa land deal involving a company connected to Parth, the son of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, had his anticipatory bail plea denied by a Pune court on Monday.

Yeole is also an accused in another matter involving a state agriculture department land parcel in the Bopodi area, and both cases have been merged.

Additional Sessions Judge P Y Ladekar rejected the suspended tehsildar's plea after prosecution opposed it, stating that despite knowing that the 40-acre parcel in Mundhwa belonged to the state government, Yeole issued a notice to the Botanical Survey of India (the lessee), directing them to vacate the land on the ground it has been purchased by a private firm, Amadea Enterprises LLP.

Despite being a main stakeholder in Amadea Enterprises, Parth Pawar is not mentioned in the FIR.

The prosecution also told the court that in the Bopodi case, Yeole issued an order listing some people as owners even though he knew the land in question belonged to the agriculture department.

Since suspended tehsildar Yeole was engaged in both the Bopodi and the Rs 300-crore Mundhwa land issues, a case was filed at the Khadak police station.

Last month, the sale of 40 acres of land in the affluent Mundhwa region to Amadea Enterprises for Rs 300 crore was questioned after it was revealed that the plot belonged to the government and could not be sold. Additionally, the company was purportedly spared from paying stamp duty of Rs 21 crore.

In addition to Yeole, Sheetal Tejwani, the Mundhwa land's power of attorney, and Digvijay Patil, a partner of Amadea Enterprises, are also charged in this case.