Ashok Chavan seeks exemption from appearance

Last June,Chavan had replied through an affidavit to three of the 13 points of reference being probed by the panel. On Tuesday,his lawyer told the commission that his personal presence was not required.

“Now that the commission has decided upon the first two points of reference,Chavan’s physical presence before the commission becomes pointless. He has already mentioned everything he knew about Adarsh in his affidavit. There is nothing more to add,” argued his counsel Amit Desai.

The commission had last month submitted a final report on the first two points — whether or not the land allotted to Adarsh belonged to the state government and if the land in question was reserved for housing defence personnel or Kargil war heroes.

Chavan,one of the prime accused in the scam,is facing charges of cheating,forgery and conspiracy along with several Sections under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The Enforcement Directorate,too,last month submitted an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) to the Bombay High Court,naming him along with others named in the CBI FIR.

Chavan had,during his tenure as revenue minister in 1999,allegedly passed a proposal allowing inclusion of 40 per cent civilians in the society,which was initially formed just for retired defence personnel.

In his application,Chavan claimed that Santosh Daundkar,who filed a PIL in this matter before the HC,had made vague and unproven allegations against him. “His affidavit before the commission is no longer of any credence and therefore it would not be necessary for the applicant to be examined in respect of the same,” Chavan’s application stated.

“The affidavit filed (by Chavan) clearly details limited actions in respect of Adarsh society and limited role in the decision-making process under the guidance of the bureaucrats,” it added. After Desai’s argument,Dipan Merchant,counsel for the commission,will make his arguments on Wednesday.