The Mumbai Police on Saturday booked former city mayor and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Kishori Pednekar and four others in connection with allegations that they fraudulently acquired flats meant for slum dwellers, The Times of India reported.
The police said the case was registered based on a complaint filed by an official from the Slum Rehabilitation Authority. No arrests have been made so far.
“As per the complaint filed by SRA [Slum Rehabilitation Authority] official Uday Pingle, former mayor Pednekar had acquired a flat, which was in the name of one Gangaram Boga, in the Gomata society,” an unidentified police official said, according to PTI. “The flat was allotted to Boga in 2008 but Pednekar mentioned it as her property in the 2017 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls.”
Based on his complaint, a case under Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code was registered against Pednekar, her son Saiprasad and three others.
According to the complaint, Kish Corporate Services, a company run by the former mayor’s son has its office in the flat. In 2020, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kirit Somaiya had filed a public interest litigation in the Bombay High Court alleging that the company showed an illegally-occupied Slum Rehabilitation Authority flat as its address, The Times of India reported.
The other three accused persons in the case – Prashant Gavas, Shaila Gavas and Girish Revankar – are directors of Kish Corporate Services.
Pednekar said that she was informed about the first information report on Saturday evening, reported The Indian Express. “Everyone is aware of what is happening here and we will fight against it,” she said.
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