Will definitely enquire into allegations against Nitin Gadkari: Veerappa Moily

October 23, 2012

moily

New Delhi, October 23: A day after Congress General Secretary Digvijaya Singh called for a probe into alleged corporate fraud by BJP President Nitin Gadkari, Union Corporate Affairs Minister M Veerappa Moily today said that the government will "definitely enquire" into the matter.

Mr Gadkari has been accused of using shell companies to fund his business, and of receiving investments from contractors. He has also been targeted by activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal of furthering his business interests at the cost of poor farmers in Vidarbha in Maharashtra.

"Our process is, we first make some discreet enquiry into this. Then find out if there's any violation. Let me see, now that it has come into public domain...we'll definitely enquire into it. And I'll get a report," Mr Moily said.

The Union Minister's promise for a probe into alleged fraud by Mr Gadkari is significant in that it had stoutly defended businessman Robert Vadra, when the latter was accused of alleged corruption by Mr Kejriwal. This happened even before the activist-politician had taken on Mr Gadkari. Mr Vadra is the son-in-law of Congress President Sonia Gandhi.

The Congress, meanwhile, said today that it was for the government to act against the BJP President.

Mr Gadkari has consistently refuted all allegations of a quid pro quo in his business dealings.

Mr Gadkari was the Public Works Department Minister of a Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra in 1995-99, when a company called Ideal Road Builders was awarded hefty contracts. Ideal did remarkably well in those years - its turnover rose fromRs.41 crore in 1996 to Rs. 67 crore in 1999.

A little after Mr Gadkari demitted office, in 2001, Ideal Road Builders invested in Mr Gadkari's Purti group of companies in 2001, picking up almost Rs. 1.85 crore of shares. Ideal Road Builders has since become a subsidiary of IRB Infra Developers Limited. IRB Infra Developers, in a response to a questionnaire, said in an email, "Ideal Road Builders Private Limited made an investment of Rs. 1.85 crore in equity shares of Purti Sakhar Karkhana in 2001. At that time, investment in sugar factory in Vidarbha region was felt to yield promising returns." Mr DP Mhaiskar, the founder of the Ideal Road Builders, also invested in approximately Rs. 2 crore of shares. Together, they control about eight per cent of Purti Group.

In financial year 2010, the Purti Group received a loan of 165 crores from Global Safety Vision, a company started by DP Mhaiskar. With this one loan, Purti was able to repay all its outstanding debt. Surprisingly, in its last regulatory filings Global Safety Vision had only 1 lakh paid up capital.

Opponents allege that these loans and investments are quid pro quo. But Mr Gadkari has vehemently denied that, saying that he has not done any favours to Ideal Road Builders. He defended his ties with businessman and founder of Ideal Road Builders, DP Mhaiskar saying, "I can accept equity from anyone, there is nothing wrong. I am friends with Mr Mhaiskar and many contractors are my friends... Purti has losses of 64 crores, Mhaiskar loaned me 165 crores from his company, and I have repaid him 64 crores."

But there are other questions about the investors of the Purti Group, which has eight group companies that range from power, sugar, ethanol, alcohol, bio diesel among others.

Mr Gadkari is the chairman of the Rs. 300-crore Purti group, which, apart from sugar, has interest in power and other things. But the BJP chief does not see a conflict of interest in his being a leading politician and a businessman. His latter role, he says, has ceased to be pertinent. "I am the chairman, I am not director. I have resigned," he said. His sugar company is one of the biggest companies in the Vidarbha region; Mr Gadkari said that business is an agriculture cooperative, set up for social good to help farmers in the region driven to suicide.


Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
May 2,2020

New Delhi, May 2: With 2,293 new cases in the last 24 hours, the highest number of cases in a single day, India's COVID-19 tally reached 37,336 on Saturday, including 1,218 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
As many as 71 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours.

Out of the total number, 9,951 people have been cured/discharged/migrated.

In the state of Maharashtra, the number of coronavirus positive cases has crossed the 10,000-mark with at least 485 deaths.

The positive cases in Maharashtra has reached 11,506, including 1,879 discharged cases.

After Maharashtra, Gujarat has the most number of COVID-19 cases (4,721). The state has reported 236 deaths, while 735 people have been discharged.

The Centre on Friday extended the ongoing nationwide lockdown for two more weeks with effect from May 4 till May 17 while allowing different sets of relaxations in red, orange and green zones.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
February 9,2020

Panaji, Feb 9: RSS general secretary Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi on Saturday said that anybody who wants to work (in India) will have to do so with the Hindu community and for their empowerment.

Addressing a lecture on the topic "Vishwaguru Bharat, an RSS perspective" at Dona Paula in Panaji, Mr Joshi referred to his communication with an intellectual who had said that India should become a "supre-rashtra" in the year 2020.

"Anybody who wants to work (in India) will have to work with the Hindu commumnity by taking them along and for their empowerment. Hindus have witnessed the rise and fall of India since the time immemorial. India cannot be separated from (the) Hindu (community). Hindus have always been at the centre of this nation," Mr Joshi said in Marathi.

He also added that since Hindus are not communal or antagonist, "nobody should be reluctant to work for the Hindu community".

The RSS leader further said, "The world says India will become a superpower in 2020, but I remember my conversation with an intellectual who had said that India should become a super-rashtra (super nation) in 2020".

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant was among those who attended the lecture.

"To create awareness and unity amongst Hindus does not amount to (taking) an action against others (community). No one should feel it that way. We can say with utter self confidence before the entire world that Hindus becoming strong won't result in destructive activities, but (such proposition) will work for the society and humanity," he added.

Invoking history, Mr Joshi said Hindus never invaded other countries. "Whatever wars (they had fought) were for self defence. Everyone has the right to self defence," he said.

"It is India's duty to teach the world to walk on the path of ''samanvay'' (coordination). Nobody else other than India and Hindus can do this," Mr Joshi said.

He said some communities in the world keep preaching that only their path is "great".

"But we are from the (Hindu) community which says that we have our own path so as you. When the world will accept this ideology, then all the issues would get solved. It is the duty of India to take the world on that path," he added.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
January 28,2020

New Delhi, Jan 28: Kolkata Metro Rail Corp expects to complete its East-West project, which runs partly under the city’s iconic Hooghly river, by March 2022 after a delay of several years doubled costs.

The authority is awaiting a final installment of Rs 20 crore ($2.8 million) over the next two years from the Indian Railway Board, said Manas Sarkar, managing director at KMRC. A soft loan of Rs 4,160 crore from Japan International Cooperation Agency helps fund 48.5% of the project.

India’s oldest metro, which started in 1984 with a North-South service, was due to expand by 2014 but faced problems including squatters on the planned route. These issues have contributed to the total project cost rising to about Rs 8,600 crore for some 17 kilometers from Rs 4,900 crore for 14 km.

“About 40% of total transport demand will be tackled by these two metro services,” Sarkar said in an interview at his office in Kolkata. “It will be a relief for environmental pollution and the city should be much more decongested.”

The new line is expected to carry about 900,000 people daily, -- roughly 20% of the city’s population -- and will take less than a minute to cross a 520-meter underwater tunnel. Depending on the time of day, it takes some 20 minutes to use the ferry and anywhere upward of an hour to cross the Howrah bridge.

KMRC will repay the JICA loan over 30 years after an initial six-year moratorium. The interest rate is between 1.2% to 1.6%. The East-West metro project is 74% owned by the railway ministry and 26% by the ministry of housing and urban affairs.

“We don’t anticipate any further cost escalation now,” Sarkar said.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.