CBI raids offices, residences of Adarsh promoters

MUMBAI - A day after filing its first FIR in the Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society scam, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Sunday conducted raids at the residences and offices of three of its promoters, an official said.

CBI officials raided residences and offices of promoters M.M. Wangchu, Kanhaiyalal Gidwani and R.C. Thakur in Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur and Patna (in Bihar), the official said.

Two flats and one office of Gidwani and three houses of Thakur in Thane, Nagpur and Bihar were raided. Raids were also conducted at the Adarsh Society office in Mumbai.

After months of conducting a preliminary inquiry into the controversial Adarsh Society scam, the CBI finally registered a first information report (FIR) Saturday against 13 people.

The development comes in the wake of the Bombay High Court seeking to know what action the CBI had taken in the matter without registering a FIR in the case.

At a hearing Jan 18, the high court had directed the investigating agency to file the FIR within two weeks.

Among other things, the society was accused of usurping a prime plot of defence land meant to house heroes of Kargil war, violating floor space index rules, flouting Coastal Regulation Zone norms and other regulations.

Former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan has also been named in the FIR.

Chavan had quit as the chief minister after his name cropped up in the scam. Following Chavans exit, a former state human rights commission member Subhash Lalla also quit for the same reason.

The state information commissioner Ramanand Tiwari was suspended Jan 20 by the state government which initiated proceedings seeking his removal from the constitutional post.

Besides, the state government is also looking into the role of various other bureaucrats whose names have cropped up in the scam.

Similarly, the defence authorities have also initiated a parallel probe into the role of its officers who were directly or indirectly involved in the scam.