Congress seeks probe by sitting SC judge into ‘land scams’ by MP CM and family

The Congress on Wednesday demanded a judicial inquiry headed by a sitting Supreme Court judge into allegations surrounding large-scale land purchases by family members of Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav, while accusing the BJP of maintaining a “conspicuous silence” on the issue.

Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Congress media and publicity department chairman Pawan Khera and Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee president Jitu Patwari alleged that the land acquisitions were carried out under the patronage of the BJP and the RSS.

Taking a swipe at the RSS, Khera remarked, “Sangham sharnam gachchhami (in the Sangh I seek shelter),” suggesting that those involved in alleged land grabbing enjoyed the protection of the Sangh. He also criticised the RSS for wielding influence without accountability, claiming that it sought authority without accepting responsibility.

Khera accused the BJP of betraying the religious faith of devotees, alleging that while family members of the chief minister had acquired land in the holy city of Ujjain, those associated with the Ram temple in Ayodhya had also misused donations made by devotees.

Drawing a parallel with insider trading in the stock market, Khera alleged that the chief minister’s family had benefited from prior knowledge of upcoming development projects. “The chief minister has access to information about future projects, influence and authority. The question is whether that knowledge and power were misused to facilitate these land purchases,” he said.

Questioning the BJP’s refusal to respond to the allegations, Khera contrasted it with the Congress’ decision to remove former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan after allegations surfaced regarding his family’s links to the Adarsh Housing Society controversy.

Patwari said more than 30 hours had elapsed since media reports detailing the land purchases by the chief minister’s relatives were published, yet neither the state government nor the BJP had issued a substantive response.

“If the report is false, why has no defamation case been filed? Why has no action been taken against the newspaper (Indian Express)?” he asked.

Patwari — himself from an OBC background — also dismissed the BJP’s attempt to portray the controversy as an attack on an OBC leader after state BJP leaders claimed Mohan Yadav was being targeted because of his social background. “Does belonging to the OBC community provide a licence for wrongdoing? The issue is not caste; the issue is accountability and transparency,” he said.

He further asked whether the BJP government was willing to order a judicial inquiry and whether the chief minister would release a white paper detailing all land owned or acquired by his family since 2023.

The Congress leader challenged the chief minister to answer a series of questions, including whether his family had indeed purchased the land under discussion, whether development and corridor plans were altered after the acquisitions, and whether the timelines of those projects would be made public.

Calling the alleged Ujjain land deal “only the first in a series”, Patwari claimed that two more controversies had recently surfaced in the state. One, he alleged, involved a “transfer industry” across six government departments worth nearly Rs 1,000 crore.

The second concerned the transfer of land allegedly valued at Rs 500 crore to a trust for a token amount of Re 1, with one of the trust members serving as the chief minister’s cultural adviser.

Patwari demanded answers on why land worth hundreds of crores was allotted for a nominal sum and how the chief minister’s family financed rapid land acquisitions after he assumed office.

The Congress also sought clarity on whether companies linked to the chief minister’s family had benefited from development projects, whether changes made to the area’s master plan would be made public, whether local landowners were informed about the transfers, and whether Mohan Yadav would himself support an independent judicial inquiry into the matter.