Mumbai: Amid the ongoing stand-off between Congress and Shiv Sena over delimitation of wards in Mumbai ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls, former civic leader of opposition Ravi Raja on Thursday alleged a TDR (Transfer Development Rights) scam in BMC to the tune of ₹9380.25 crore. He made the allegations in the context of BMC’s project to construct 14,000 tenements for project-affected persons in the city. Homes are being built in Worli, Mulund, Bhandup and Kurla.
Congress alleged that the BMC has given builders benefits amounting to ₹9,380.25 crore in the form of credit notes during these projects.
As these credit notes can be used any time, and are transferable, the civic body is set to lose the amount over the next few years, Ravi Raja said in a statement.
He alleged that in the case of the residential tenements project planned for the G/South ward, corresponding to Worli, the cost of construction is ₹44.59 crore, whereas the builder is being given ₹752.50 crore, resulting in a benefit of ₹680.91 crore.
Similarly, in the project in Mulund, the builder is getting a benefit of ₹4,114 crore, and the actual cost of the project is ₹627 crore. In Bhandup, while the actual cost is ₹160.42 crore, the building is getting an additional benefit of ₹1056.75 crore; and in the case of Chandivali near Kurla, the actual cost of the project is ₹337.20 crore and the builder is receiving a benefit of ₹2,123.81 crore over and above the cost, Congress has alleged.
Raja said Congress will file a complaint with the Lokayukta next week regarding the “TDR scam”, and has written to the municipal commissioner drawing his attention to the issue.
Commenting on the delimitation of electoral wards in the city, where the party has earlier alleged that ward boundaries were redrawn by the civic administration in a bid to benefit the Shiv Sena in the upcoming civic polls, Ravi Raja said, “As our Mumbai Chief, Ashok Jagtap has already stated we do not want to contest the redrawn ward boundaries anymore. Despite the way it has been done, we will contest the elections with full force and prove our victory.”
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Thursday said that Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole should study the history of the party properly. The reaction came after Patole said that Mumbai never saw floods during monsoons when Congress had its mayor in the city.
Earlier, Patole had said that its Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi alliance partners Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) changed ward boundaries in Mumbai to curb its growth and use it to their advantage.
On Wednesday, Patole had said, “For several years when Congress had its mayor, Mumbai never saw flood. But in the past few years, the city is getting flooded every year.”
Reacting sharply, Raut said that Congress had leadership in Mumbai at one point but now Shiv Sena is the “king” of Mumbai.
“Does he remember when was the last Congress Mayor [in Mumbai]? Nana Patole is our friend; he must study Congress properly… Yes, Congress once ruled Mumbai, and SK Patil was the mayor thrice, but at that time, Mumbai Congress had leadership. Today, Congress has some pockets in Mumbai. But Shiv Sena is the ‘baadshah’ of Mumbai and will continue to rule it. If he wants information on when Mumbai saw floods, we can get the information for him,” Raut said.
Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Sena leader and minister Aaditya Thackeray said, “There are with us and with their ‘good luck’ we hope to get good rains this year.”
Patole replied saying, “Our wishes are always with them and therefore they are in power today.”
Raut added that he shared Patole’s idea of making the Congress party stronger for it to emerge as an alternative at the national level. “We think that Congress should strengthen, perhaps more than him. We believe that if the Congress becomes stronger then it can become an alternative in the country,” he said.
Meanwhile, speaking on the Rajya Sabha election for six seats, Raut said that anyone can contest independently on their strength. The remark was aimed at Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje, who intends to contest Independently but with the support of the four major parties in Maharashtra.
“Those who want to contest Independently must do so on their strength. The Maha Vikas Aghadi has decided to contest the sixth seat. We respect Chhatrapati Sambhaji, we have good relations with him, but this is a political fight, not a social one. We have supported him in all the social movements.
“MVA wants to send its candidate; he can join the MVA… It will be Shiv Sena’s candidate. We have the votes and we will win the seat,” Raut told regional news channels.