Adarsh society scam: HC seeks reply on Defence Ministry's claim

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Monday directed Maharashtra government and Adarsh Housing Society to file their submissions on a suit filed by Defence Ministry seeking claim on the land on which the society building stands in south Mumbai.The ministry had in December 2012 filed a title suit stating that the land in Colaba where the 31-storey Adarsh building is constructed belongs to it (the Defence Ministry) and its possession should be handed back.[caption id="attachment_956571" align="alignleft" width="380"] Image for representation only. AFP[/caption]Justice SJ Kathawala on Monday directed the state government and the society to file their written submissions within eight weeks and posted the matter for hearing on 8 October.The ministry had filed the title suit after a state government appointed judicial panel held in its report submitted in April 2012 that the land belonged to the Maharashtra government and it was not reserved for Kargil war widows or their families.The Defence Ministry in its suit has alleged that the Adarsh building was built "illegally and unlawfully". It has also stated that it is the sole owner of the land and that the land was transferred to Adarsh society by fraud, collusion and connivance on the part of the society members, ministers and bureaucrats of the state government.PTI