Maharashtra irrigation scam: Will white paper give clean chit to Ajit Pawar?

Months after Ajit Pawar resigned as the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra over allegations of involvement in an irrigation scam running into thousands of crores, the state government’s white paper on irrigation projects is to be tabled in the state cabinet today and its likely to give the NCP strongman a clean chit. According to reports, the white paper will in effect give a clean chit to Pawar and the Water Resources Department, which has been in the eye of the storm ever since the scam was exposed. The white paper in the irrigation scam reportedly justifies all the costs incurred and cost escalations in irrigation projects in Maharashtra during Pawar’s tenure. An IBNLive report states that the Water Resources Ministry has countered charges of corruption in irrigation projects by listing project-wise reasons for cost overruns and delays. [caption id=“attachment_539485” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The return of Ajit Pawar? PTI[/caption] The white paper will state that the irrigation potential in Maharashtra has increased by 28 percent in the last decade, reports Free Press Journal, countering claims made by Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and Opposition leader Eknath Khadse that the rise of irrigation potential was just 0.01 percent despite an expenditure of Rs 70,000 crores. According to Economic Times, the white paper claims that cost escalation in each project has been approved by the Central Water Commission and the Planning Commission, and the escalation is much lower when compared with projects in other states. The paper reportedly blames delays in land acquisition and rehabilitation for the  cost escalation of irrigation projects. But does a clean chit mean Pawar will return to the post he vacated? Maybe not. According to reports, the Cabinet may not accept the report as a part of a Congress’ strategy to delay his entry even after succumbing to NCP pressure to give him a clean chit. Opposition parties have already begun to speak out over the reports saying that it hardly comes as a surprise that Pawar is likely to be cleared in the probe.