By IANS,
Panaji : Union Minister of Science and Technology Vilasrao Deshmukh Tuesday scoffed at speculation over his alleged involvement in the Adarsh Society land scam in Mumbai and claimed that he was a victim of “misconception and media hype”.
The scam involved alleged grabbing of public land to construct the 31-storey Adarsh housing society building in Mumbai’s upscale Colaba.
Deshmukh, a former chief minister of Maharashtra, was in Goa to campaign for the Congress candidates ahead of the March 3 state assembly polls.
“There was a lot of misconception (about the Adarsh Society land scam), largely media hype, that this land was meant for Kargil (conflict) heroes and all,” Deshmukh said.
“After the report is out, we will talk about it,” he added.
The Adarsh Society scam refers to alleged political and bureaucratic poaching of prime real estate meant for building homes for Kargil war widows and veterans.
The scam has already resulted in the resignation of chief minister Ashok Chavan and has also brought the alleged role of Deshmukh under cloud for bending rules to allow top officials to avail of flats in the housing society.