Date: 30 Apr 2012
http://www.punemirror.in/article/62/2012042920120429023020656d4733805/%E2%80%98Patil-insisted-on-khadki-land%E2%80%99.html ==================================================== City ex-armymen associations cry foul\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ‘Patil insisted on khadki land’ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\Justice for Jawans says letter from Pratibha Patil’s office demanded the 2.6L sq ft plot and adjacent bungalow; she didn’t care to meet ex-servicemens’ widows \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ \\\\\\\\\\\\ Posted On Sunday, April 29, 2012 at 02:30:07 AM \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Reacting to a vociferous public outcry over the allocation of prime land in Khadki, on Mumbai-Pune highway, for her post-retirement abode, President Pratibha Patil finally relinquished her dreams. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ She emphatically stated in her clarification on Friday that she had accepted the defence land, located in Khadki Cantonment Board (KCB) limits, as it was offered to her by the Union Home Ministry.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ The letter issued from the President’s office further stated that Patil’s decision was also based on the fact that she had worked with ex-servicemens’ widows in the past and was sensitive to their cause.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ The President’s twin claims have now ruffled the feathers of members of the Pune-based NGO Justice for Jawans afresh. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ The activists who have been running a campaign against her now insist that the land — measuring 2.6 lakh sq feet — was not allocated to her, but it was in fact she who demanded the land and another adjacent bungalow for her comforts. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ They also allege that Patil’s claims of being sensitive to the cause of widows of ex-servicemen, is a bit of a sham. They allege that she had refused to meet a delegation of widows at the Rashtrapati Bhawan around six months ago. The ladies wished to meet her to return their husbands’ gallantry medals as a mark of protest against the government’s unsympathetic treatment towards them. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ L: The letter from the President that denands land in Khadki and above: Construction at the site for President Patil’s retirement home \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ A day after the statement from Rashtrapati Bhawan, Justice for Jawans claimed on Saturday that the land allocated was in excess of norms and falls in the ‘A1’ category that can only be used for military purposes. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Lt Col Suresh Patil, founder of Justice for Jawans, said, “A Rashtrapati Bhawan statement pointed that the land was offered her by the Home Ministry; but a letter from the secretariat says that it was sought by the President herself. This particular land was searched for and a man from Jalgaon was sent to verify the spot.”\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Work going on at the proposed site for President Patil’s retirement home \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ As the agitation for winning their land back from the President was on, Col Patil claimed that his own rented house in Ghorpadi was raided last week by some unknown army people who wanted to prove that he had constructed an illegal structure, which was actually a shelter made of bamboo. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ At the same time, the Tripura Governor Dr D Y Patil also asked him to fold up his campaign against the President.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Col Patil’s colleague Cdr Ravindra Pathak said, “Veterans from Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement had sought an appointment with her while the agitation was on, but she refused to make time for them. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ She only sent her under secretary to meet the delegation. Also, her so-called good work as Rajasthan Governor is nothing extraordinary, as it is just a part of the job of a governor.” Pathak further stressed that they have floated RTI queries on the expenses incurred so far to build the bungalow. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ He believes that it is likely to be in excess of Rs 2 crore, and feels that recovery of that expense should be handed over to the military authorities.\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ► A letter from the President’s secretariat says the land was sought by the President herself. This particular land was searched for and a man from Jalgaon was sent to verify it \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\- COL Suresh Patil, Founder, Justice for Jawans ================================================== 000000000