Victim of vendetta, says Ashok Chavan

Mumbai: Congress state president Ashok Chavan expressed satisfaction over the Bombay high court’s decision that granted him relief and said that the prestige of the governor’s office would be restored with this. The senior leader has also expressed full faith in the judiciary and said that the entire Adarsh Housing Society scam case was a ‘political vendetta’ against him. The government is likely to move Supreme Court in the matter.

“The Bombay high court order not only set aside the governor’s decision but also denied the CBI permission to prosecute me. I am happy and have faith in judiciary. I haven’t seen the judgment, but the court has said that no fresh evidence was found against me. Ultimately, the prestige of governor’s office has been restored because the earlier governor’s decision was changed,” Mr Chavan told reporters.

The senior leader was referring to a change of order by the present governor giving permission to prosecute him.  

He added, “This is a political vendetta and an attempt from political rivals to malign my image. The truth has ultimately been revealed now,” he said.

Asked if the corruption charges pertaining to the Adarsh scam damaged the Congress, Mr Chavan replied in the negative. “The allegations were used in elections against the Congress and myself. But I won with a
huge majority of 80,000 votes,” he said.

Meanwhile, the BJP said that the government would study the high court order and seek legal opinion on whether or not to appeal in the Supreme Court.

BJP spokesperson Madhav Bhandari said the decision to give sanction for prosecution against Chavan was not political and not taken suo motu.

“In the 2G spectrum matter, the Supreme Court cancelled the decision of awarding 2G spectrum on the ground of misappropriation on January 30 2012.

Now it will decide the issue and court order can’t be consider as a relief to the Congress. In irrigation scam, the state government is taking action as per the  law,” he said.