Adarsh scam: CBI seeks to drop Chavan case as governor refuses nod

Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan looks set to get off the hook in Mumbai's Adarsh housing scam, with The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday filing an application in a special court seeking to drop Chavan's name from the list of accused in Adarsh housing society scam, as it had failed to get the green signal from the governor to prosecute Chavan.

Although Maharashtra Governor K Sankarnarayanan has refused to sanction the prosecution of Chavan, the CBI could seek a review of the decision if it comes out with fresh evidence.

Current Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan can also ask to governor to review his decision; but neither is seen as likely to happen.

The CBI said since all the gathered evidence indicating the alleged involvement of Chavan in the scam had already been placed before the governor, it will not be immediately filing for the review of his order.

Chavan, who resigned as chief minister of Maharashtra after the scam surfaced, was among 12 persons charged by the CBI in connection with the case.

The former chief minister had challenged inclusion of his name in the charge-sheet, saying no sanction for prosecution was taken from the governor, whereas CBI countered it by saying since he was a former minister at the time of being charged there was no need for sanction (See: Adarsh scam: CBI opposes Maharashtra ex-CM Chavan's innocence plea).