Mumbai: NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar on Monday slammed the Maharashtra government’s decision to seek a CBI probe into the plane crash that killed his uncle and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, alleging that the move would only cause delays in the inquiry.
His comments came a day after CM Fadnavis said the government has requested Union home minister Amit Shah to order a CBI investigation into the plane crash that killed Ajit Pawar and four others in Baramati on January 28.
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Speaking to reporters on the premises of Vidhan Bhavan, Rohit said a report seeking a CBI inquiry had already been submitted to Union ministry concerned, the directorate general of civil aviation and all related authorities, including the chief minister.
Rohit also raised questions over reports that the black box of the plane had been burnt, and said photographs of the device had reached him. “If any irregularity comes to light, this government will have to pay a heavy price,” he warned.
He noted that this was the first legislature session without Ajit Pawar, recalling that his deceased uncle would usually be first to arrive at the House and the last to leave.
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“He (Ajit Pawar) would always say that no matter what happens, one must fight and that is why we are fighting,” the NCP (SP) leader said, adding that Ajit Pawar had presented the State budget 11 times and could have set a record for the most presentations. Given more time, he could even have reached the post of chief minister, he claimed.
He pointed out that the central agency had nearly 7,000 pending cases, of which around 2,500 had been pending for more than a decade.
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“We will not tolerate this wastage of time in the name of investigation. The CID can conduct the probe,” he said, claiming that only 30 per cent of the information regarding the crash had been made public so far and that 70 per cent of the material was still with the government.
Speaking about the absence of NCP (SP) leaders at the MVA’s meeting ahead of Budget Session, Rohit said several senior leaders
