Justice PD Naik recuses from Maharashtra Sadan scam case

A new bench will hear the plea in Maharashtra Sadan scam case after Bombay High Court Justice PD Naik recused himself from the case.

For the third time, a petition filed by an accused in the Maharashtra Sadan scam will go to an alternate bench of the Bombay High Court after Justice PD Naik recused himself from the case.

KS Chamankar Enterprises was appointed as a developer and PS Chamankar and Associates was the architect of a new Maharashtra Sadan (guest house of the state) in Delhi when allegations of kickbacks in contracts awarded by NCP MLA Chhagan Bhujbal were levelled and cases were registered.

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Deepak Deshpande, who worked as Secretary in Public Works Department of the Maharashtra government had sought discharge from the Mumbai Special Judge on the grounds that there was no material to support the allegation of conspiracy, forgery and cheating against him. He also submitted that the offences had been falsely alleged against him. He claimed to have acted in a bonafide manner in compliance with the instructions of his superiors. Bhujbal at that time was the PWD minister.

However, the Sessions Court rejected his plea by observing that “being the superior officer, it was Deshpande’s duty to correct the mistake, if any, in the submissions made in the feasibility report before placing the same before the committee of ministers. It was not expected of him to blindly rely on the submissions of his subordinate officers in the report.”

It was against this that Deshpande had approached the high court. His plea was first heard by Justice Sandeep Shinde who recused from hearing this case on September 23, 2021.

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