A brewing storm in Maharashtra’s political landscape has intensified with two FIRs exposing alleged multi-crore land scams involving Amedea Enterprise LLP, a firm co-owned by Parth Pawar—son of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar—and businessman Digvijay Patil. The cases revolve around the fraudulent sale of prime government lands in Pune’s Mundhwa and Bopodi areas, marked by severe undervaluation, forged documents, and evasion of stamp duties running into crores. In a parallel move, the state government has formed a high-level inquiry committee to dissect one of the deals, but opposition voices are raising alarms over the deliberate omission of Parth Pawar’s name from both FIRs, despite his partnership stake, fueling accusations of high-level protectionism.
These scandals, rooted in systemic flaws in land revenue administration, have spotlighted 53 acres of state-owned property with market values exceeding Rs 2,000 crore, transacted at fractions of their worth. Whistleblowers and RTI activists had flagged the anomalies months ago, but swift action followed only after media scrutiny in late October 2025, leading to suspensions, deal cancellations, and criminal probes.
Mundhwa Mahar Watan Fraud: Rs 1,800 Crore Government Land Sold for a Song
The controversy ignited over a sprawling 40-acre (17.5 hectares) plot in Mundhwa—prime real estate adjacent to Pune’s affluent Koregaon Park and IT corridors. Classified as “Mahar Watan” (government-designated) land under “Mumbai Sarkar” in revenue records since the 1970s, belonged to state ownership. Despite this, in May 2025, the plot was illegally transferred through 272 sub-plots to Amedea Enterprise LLP for a mere Rs 300 crore, against a market valuation of Rs 1,800 crore.
The deal, executed via a power of attorney held by Shital Tejwani, bypassed mandatory state approvals and ignored a May 9, 2025, directive from the district administration for Rs 5.89 crore in stamp duty. Instead, a nominal Rs 500 was paid, culminating in a Rs 21 crore evasion and a potential Rs 1,500 crore windfall loss to the exchequer. Activists contend the undervaluation and waivers were orchestrated to favor private interests, with forged records masking the land’s public status.
Exposed in early November 2025, the transaction was scrapped on November 6 following intervention by top officials, but not before triggering legal backlash.
Bawdhan FIR: Stamp Duty Evasion and Collusion Charges Against Three Key Players
The inaugural FIR, registered at Bawdhan Police Station in Pimpri-Chinchwad on November 6, 2025, was filed by Santosh Hingane, a 55-year-old Joint District Registrar (Class I) and Stamp Duty Collector from the Inspector General of Registration (IGR) office. Hingane’s written complaint, accuses a trio of conspiring to defraud the state in the Mundhwa deal, isolated to May 20, 2025.
Invoked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023:
- Section 316(5): Cheating by dishonestly inducing property delivery.
- Section 318(4): Criminal breach of trust by agents or public servants.
- Section 3(5): General clauses for organized criminal acts.
Named accused:
- Shital Kiran Tejwani: Power-of-attorney holder. Allegedly forged documents to sell known government land.
- Digvijay Amrish Patil: Director and partner in Amedea Enterprise LLP. Accused of colluding in the undervalued purchase and duty evasion.
- Ravindra Balkrishna Taru : Suspended Sub-Registrar from Haveli IV office. Booked for registering the deed without collecting dues, causing Rs 6 crore immediate loss.
Hingane detailed how the group ignored revenue laws, altering records for personal gain. Taru was suspended pre-FIR for “gross irregularities.”
Bopodi Agriculture Land Heist: Forgery and Misuse Over 17 Months
Compounding the Mundhwa fallout, a second FIR was filed at Khadak Police Station on November 7, 2025, expanding the scam to 13 acres (5.35 hectares) of state Agriculture Department land in Bopodi, near Shukrawar Peth. Valued at hundreds of crores for its urban proximity, this plot—held by the department since 1883—was illegally reclassified as private through manipulated orders, enabling transfer to Amedea-linked entities.
The complaint, a written report by Prathibha Bade, 50-year-old Sub-Divisional Officer (Pune), was registered at Khadak Police Station. It covers a prolonged conspiracy from February 12, 2024, to July 1, 2025, at midnight spans, highlighting bureaucratic complicity.
Under BNS, 2023:
- Section 201: Concealing evidence.
- Section 3(5): Organized crime provisions.
- Section 316(2) & 316(5): Cheating variants.
- Section 318(3) & 318(4): Breach of trust.
- Section 336(3) & 336(4): Rash acts endangering life.
- Section 338: Grievous hurt by rash acts.
- Section 340(2): False evidence fabrication.
- Section 61(2): Criminal conspiracy.
Nine accused:
- Suryakant Yeole (suspended Tehsildar, Pune City): core accused for issuing illegal ownership orders via forged notices to vacate.
- Digvijay Amrish Patil: Repeated from Bawdhan FIR; accused of applying for possession post-forgery.
- Shital Kiran Tejwani: Linked for facilitating transfers.
- Hemant Gavande: Involved in document manipulation.
- Rajendra Ramchandra Vidhwans: Part of the forgery ring.
- Hrishikesh Madhav Vidhwans: Aided in reclassification.
- Mangal Madhav Vidhwans: Collaborated in the scheme.
- Vidyanand Avinash Puranik (Indore): Outsider in the conspiracy.
- Jayashree Sanjay Ekbote (Mumbai): Assisted in logistics.
Bade alleged Yeole abused his Mamledar Kacheri role to convert public land private, with the group eyeing development gains.
State Intervention: Inquiry Panel Targets Mundhwa Irregularities
On November 7, 2025, the Maharashtra Revenue and Forests Department notified a six-member committee, chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue), including the Pune Divisional Commissioner, Land Records Commissioner, IGR Pune, District Collector, and Deputy Secretary (Stamps). Focused on Mundhwa, it must investigate:
- Forgery mechanisms.
- Accountability and penalties.
- Land restoration.
- Preventive reforms.
A one-month report is due, digitized on the state portal. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis termed it “serious,” assuring impartiality alongside criminal cases. Sub-registrar Taru and Tehsildar Yeole face suspensions, signaling initial accountability.
Pawar Omission Fuels Cover-Up Claims
The stark absence of Parth Pawar’s name in both FIRs—despite Amedea’s direct beneficiary role—has ignited shielding allegations. As a designated partner with Patil (Sunetra Pawar’s nephew), Parth’s involvement in approvals is evident from firm records, yet only signatories are booked. Ajit Pawar insists Parth was unaware of the land’s status, hailing the cancellation as “proactive” and denying exchanges. “Not a single paisa changed hands,” he claimed.
Opposition leaders, including Congress’s Vijay Wadettiwar and Shiv Sena (UBT)’s demand judicial probes and Ajit’s recusal, labeling it “elite impunity.” RTI activist Vijay Kumbhar, who first alerted IGR in June 2025, questions: “Why protect the powerful?” With Ajit’s NCP-BJP alliance under strain pre-elections, the saga tests anti-corruption vows.
Case Timeline: From Shadow Deals to Spotlight Scrutiny
- 1883: Bopodi land vested in Agriculture Department.
- February 12, 2024: Bopodi forgery begins at Mamledar Kacheri.
- May 9, 2025: Mundhwa stamp duty directive issued.
- May 20, 2025: Mundhwa deed executed; activist Dinkar Kotkar alerts IGR on June 5.
- July 1, 2025: Bopodi scheme peaks.
- October 2025: Media exposes undervaluations.
- November 6, 2025: Bawdhan FIR; Mundhwa deal scrapped; Taru suspended.
- November 7, 2025: Khadak FIR; inquiry notified; Yeole suspended.
- November 8, 2025: Political demands mount; probes accelerate.
As threads unravel potential political ties, these cases could expose deeper rot in Maharashtra’s land governance, challenging the ruling coalition’s integrity amid public outrage.
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