Pune: After much controversy regarding the Seth Hirachand Nemchand Smarak Trust (SHNT) Jain Boarding House deal in Pune, Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation and Cooperation and Pune MP Murlidhar Mohol visited the site on Saturday. Mohol's own name was brought up in the controversy, stating that he is involved in it, and the opposition and political leaders targeted him heavily for that. However, speaking to reporters, Mohol reiterated that he was not involved in this and promised to find a solution for it soon.
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What Is The Issue with the Jain Housing Board Deal?
Several issues regarding the transaction of this land, which is based in Model Colony, Shivajinagar, have been raised by the Jain Community members, alumni of the boarding house, and local politicians. The deal happened earlier this month, and it was decided that the land would be sold to Gokhale Builders. However, the community raised a question that the hostel and temple (which are on the land) were established for charitable purposes, and selling them for commercial purposes breaches the original commitments.
Along with the sentimental and religious reasons, it was also said that the land, which is allegedly worth over Rs 1,000, is being sold for much lesser amounts, as the media has reported the amount to be Rs 311 crore. Pune MP Mohol, who is a former partner of Gokhale Builders, was accused of being involved in this alleged shady deal.
Politicians, mainly Jain community leader Raju Shetti and former MLA Ravindra Dhangekar, have targeted Mohol immensely due to this. The opposition called Mohol a 'land thief', but Mohol continued saying he wasn't involved, saying his partnership with Gokhale Builders was terminated last year, and the deal has happened now. A battle of accusations and reactions had erupted between Mohol and Dhangekar, and Mohol was targeted by political circles.
On October 22, the Maharashtra Charity Commissioner ordered a status quo on the Jain House land sale after complaints that the charitable property was sold below value and without full disclosure. The sale deed was reportedly executed just before this ruling. People raised the suspicion that the trust hurried to finalise the deal prematurely.
‘We Will Find A Solution': Mohol
After much wrath on social media and by political circles, finally, on Saturday, Mohol visited the site himself and had a talk with the Jain Housing Board's trustees. Speaking to them, Mohol said, “I assure you we will find a solution regarding this as soon as possible. Please stay calm; in the coming days we all will be satisfied.”
Speaking to reporters after the interaction, Mohol said the community believed in his non-involvement in the land transaction. He said that, as the Jain monks called him respectfully, he came. “Any person from every religion gives respect to religious leaders from every religion,” said Mohol. Mohol further said, “I gave them assurance that in the coming days we will solve this issue. For any problem regarding any subject, I will take a role without bias. We will make a way out of this soon.”
‘Some Went Personal For Political Ambitions'
Mohol further said, “As an MP of Pune city, my role and opinions regarding this are important. I thank all my brothers from the Jain Community, as they didn't take my name after I cleared my side. Politically, many accusations happened. Many people went personal and tried to take advantage of this situation. They did this to cook their own political bread and to keep their political relevance.”
“First, the doubt regarding this was raised by Raju Shetti, who is himself a leader from the Jain community. When I cleared my side with proofs in front of everyone, everyone from the Jain community didn't say anything about me. Today, they also called me personally to come and visit. They requested that I solve this issue. If I had done something wrong, I would have thought 100 times about coming to this place and would not have come. But I did, as I did nothing wrong,” Mohol added.
When Fence Eats Farm, Who Will Provide Justice? Questions Dhangekar
Mohol met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai on Friday. People speculated this visit was due to the controversy over the Jain Housing Board land deed. With Mohol visiting the site himself on Saturday, former MLA Ravindra Dhangekar from Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena went to X (formerly Twitter) and said, “Murlidhar Mohol immediately kneeled down to the Jain monk today because he received a stern warning from his seniors during yesterday's Mumbai visit. They told him to either save the Jain temple or save your ministerial post.”
"It took a full 18 days for the Pune MP to finally see the plight of the Jain community. In fact, when the fence itself eats the farm, who is supposed to deliver justice? That is the question. He is currently in a state where he cannot decide what to say about cancelling the deal, as the land was acquired in a way that would benefit his own company,” said Dhangekar.
Meanwhile, Mohol said that the visit with CM Fadnavis was not regarding this deal, and this issue was not discussed. “I keep meeting CM Fadnavis once a week regarding issues related to Pune, organisation, politics, and upcoming elections. The Jain Boarding House issue was not discussed at all,” Mohol said.
