The Pune collector has declared an eviction notice issued to the Botanical Survey of India as illegal, terming it an overreach by a tehsildar.
The notice was linked to a ₹300-crore land deal involving a firm associated with Parth Pawar, which opposition parties allege was undervalued.
Authorities have launched an inquiry and filed an FIR against the tehsildar and others, while the Pawar family maintains the sale has been cancelled.
Tehsildar’s Eviction Notice to Botanical Survey of India Declared Illegal Amid Parth Pawar Land Row
Ajit Pawar’s office has said that the sale has been cancelled and that Parth Pawar was unaware of the land’s government ownership.
Summary
The Pune district administration has declared an eviction notice issued to the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) as illegal, amid a controversy over a 40-acre land deal linked to Parth Pawar, son of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. The notice, issued in June by then Pune city tehsildar Suryakant Yeole, directed the BSI to vacate the government-leased land in Mundhwa, allegedly in favour of a private firm.
The land in question had been leased to the BSI since 1973, later extended for 50 years from 1988, at a nominal annual rent of one rupee. However, Yeole claimed that the lease had lapsed after the “original landowners” paid the occupancy price in December 2024. Acting on this, he ordered the BSI to vacate the land, which was subsequently found to be an overreach of authority.
The eviction notice came just weeks after the 40-acre plot was sold for ₹300 crore to Amadea Enterprises LLP, a firm in which Parth Pawar reportedly holds a 99% stake. Opposition parties have alleged that the deal was undervalued, suggesting the market worth could exceed ₹1,800 crore. Following the controversy, the district collector intervened to halt the eviction and launched an inquiry into the land transfer.
Collector Jitendra Dudi clarified that the land remains government property and that the transaction lacked necessary permissions. An FIR has been registered against the tehsildar and other officials for alleged misuse of authority and document irregularities. Ajit Pawar’s office has said that the sale has been cancelled and that Parth Pawar was unaware of the land’s government ownership.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said action in the Pune land deal case is being taken as per law and there is no question of saving anybody.
FIRs have been filed against signatories and vendors and those found guilty in the probe will be booked, Fadnavis said, when asked about the First Information Report (FIR) not naming Parth.
"Those who don't even understand what an FIR is, are the ones making baseless allegations. When an FIR is registered, it is filed against the express parties involved. In this case, the FIR has been filed against the company and its authorised signatories," he said.
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NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar said he supported a probe into the controversial land deal linked to the company of his grandnephew Parth.
Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal demanded that the state government release a 'white paper' on land transactions in Pune and Mumbai and hold a full-day discussion on the issue during the upcoming winter session of state legislature.
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