An outer view of the Bombay High Court in Mumbai. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday (December 10, 2025) flagged concerns about the police investigation into a controversial ₹300-crore land transaction in Pune, asking whether authorities were “protecting the son of the Deputy Chief Minister and only investigating others.”
A Single Bench judge, Justice Madhav Jamdar, made the observation while hearing the anticipatory bail plea of businesswoman Sheetal Kisanchand Tejwani, who is named in the FIR but claims she acted only as a power of attorney holder. “Is the police protecting the son of the Deputy Chief Minister and only investigating others?” the judge asked, referring to Parth Pawar, majority partner in Amadea Enterprises LLP, which purchased 40 acres of land in Mundhwa.
Public Prosecutor Mankunwar Deshmukh responded that the investigating agency would act “as per law.”
The land, categorised as Mahar watan property, cannot be sold without prior government approval. The FIR alleges that the firm was also exempted from paying ₹21 crore in stamp duty. A committee headed by the Joint Inspector General of Registration had indicted Parth’s cousin Digvijay Patil, Tejwani, and sub-registrar Ravindra Taru, but Parth was not named as his signature did not appear on any document.
Ms. Tejwani was arrested on December 3 by the Pune Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) and remains in custody till December 11. A second FIR at Bavdhan police station prompted her to seek pre-arrest bail from the High Court after a similar plea before the Sessions Court was pending.
When the Bench said it was not inclined to entertain the plea, Tejwani’s advocates Rajiv Chavan and Ajay Bhise withdrew the application.
Ms. Tejwani’s petition argued that the allegations were “manifestly civil-revenue in nature, bereft of criminal intent, and founded upon demonstrably incorrect assumptions regarding stamp duty and title,” adding that custodial interrogation was “wholly unnecessary” and denial of bail would amount to “undue harassment and an unwarranted curtailment” of her fundamental right under Article 21.
The Opposition has alleged that the actual value of the land was far higher than ₹300 crore. Amid political uproar, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar said the transaction had been cancelled, claiming his son and partner were unaware of the land’s status.
Later in the day, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in an interaction with reporters, said, “From the very beginning, the government’s stand is very clear to not protect anyone. Action will be taken against whomever is guilty.”
Published – December 11, 2025 05:00 am IST
