Mumbai: The Maharashtra government on Thursday clarified that it had no direct contractual relationship with Harshal Patil, the sub-contractor who allegedly died by suicide earlier this week in Sangli district. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar stated that Patil was not the primary contractor for the Jal Jeevan Mission but was instead working under a private contractor appointed by the government.
"Harshal Patil was not directly appointed by the government. We had awarded the contract to another contractor, who in turn subcontracted the work to Patil. Hence, we have no official connection with him," Pawar told reporters. He further explained that the state makes payments to the main contractor only, and any financial arrangements with sub-contractors are the contractor’s responsibility.
The incident, which occurred on July 22, saw 35-year-old Harshal Patil hang himself in his field at Tandulwadi village in Walwa taluka, Sangli district. According to the Maharashtra State Contractors' Association, Patil was under extreme financial distress due to approximately Rs 1.5 crore in pending payments for water supply projects he had completed over a year ago under the Jal Jeevan Mission.
Local villagers claim Patil had taken loans from private lenders and sold part of his farmland to complete the Rs 1.4 crore project in four villages — Tandulwadi, Ahirewadi, Malewadi, and Kanhegaon. Despite repeated follow-ups, the pending bills were not cleared, pushing him to take the drastic step.
The suicide has led to widespread outrage, with the Contractors' Association squarely blaming the state government for the tragedy. Association President Milind Bhosale alleged that Patil had diligently completed the assigned work and had been persistently following up for his payments, which were delayed for over a year.
“This is not an isolated case. Thousands of contractors across the state are facing similar issues. Bills worth nearly Rs 89,000 crore across various departments, including the Jal Jeevan Mission, remain unpaid by the state,” Bhosale said.
Meanwhile, Water Supply Minister Gulabrao Patil also responded to the controversy, stating that Harshal Patil had not been officially assigned any work by the government. “He may have undertaken sublet work, but there is no record of any official contract or pending bills in his name. We have verified this with the district administration and engineers,” the minister said.
Despite distancing itself from the deceased contractor, the government acknowledged the seriousness of the incident. Deputy CM Pawar emphasized that the police are thoroughly investigating the case. "The police are checking his phone records, conversations, and whether he left behind any note to understand the real reason behind the suicide," he added.
