Modi faces contempt plea in High Court

Senior advocate Mukul Sinha filed a contempt of court plea against Chief Minister Narendra Modi and his council of ministers before the Gujarat High Court on Tuesday for refusing to allow the prosecution of fisheries minister Purushottam Solanki in an alleged scam worth about Rs 400 crore.

Sinha, however, refused to share the details, saying it was a sensitive matter.

Sinha filed the application on behalf of his client Ishaq Maradia, the man who reportedly exposed the minister accusing him of giving away contracts for fishing in reservoirs in the state at throwaway rates in the last 10 years.

Maradia, who had been refused the contract by the fisheries department, had moved to Gujarat High Court in 2009 following which the court cancelled all such contracts issued by the minister.

Earlier, the court had also ordered to start a bidding process from 2007-2008. The authorities followed the order and it was found that the state government earned much more (Rs 45 crore) in revenue than it had recorded previously (Rs 2.4 crore). Maradia alleged that because Solanki did not opt for the bidding process, the government had lost more than Rs 400 crore in the past 10 years.

Maradia had also demanded that the minister be prosecuted.

However, the government refused to grant sanction for prosecution in 2010 following which Maradia filed a petition before the High Court.

The court, in its order, said the Governor, in consultation with the council of ministers, should decide in three months on the sanction to prosecute the minister.

Last week, the government decided not to allow the minister's prosecution.

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