‘Premium plot for low-value land’ : Congress leaders accuse Chhattisgarh government of providing undue benefits to Minister’s wife

The Opposition Congress on Thursday accused the Vishnu Deo Sai government of providing undue benefits to State Minister Kedar Kashyap’s wife through a town development scheme in the State capital Raipur. Demanding a probe into the procedural lapses, the party claimed that Radhika Palace Private Limited – in which Mr Kashyap’s wife Shanti serves as a director – was allotted a commercial plot in a prime area in exchange for a patch of land whose value was much lower. 

While the Minister was  not available for a comment, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dismissed the allegations as baseless and the Raipur Development Authority (RDA) asserting that the allotment was done in accordance with the rules. 

Under the MR-43 Urban Development Scheme, a provision has been made for the RDA to acquire the original land from landowners and, in exchange, return 40% of the land to them following the proposed development.

At a press conference held at the PCC headquarters here, Congress leaders Rakesh Gupta and Shreekumar Shankar Menon claimed that the RDA website listed a plot measuring approximately 23,327 square feet—to be allotted in exchange for the original land (OL) owned by Radhika Palace Private Limited which measured approximately 1.33 acres.