Bhayandar: The photograph of a tainted builder along with a municipal corporator wishing local BJP legislator Narendra Mehta on his birthday on posters, installed across the twin-city has triggered a major controversy.
The photographs on the banners featuring builder Shyam Sunder Agarwal along with BJP corporartor Suresh Khandelwal wishing the legislator on his birthday on September 25 made the rounds on social media sites, causing a major embarrassment to the party. Reacting to the row, BJP functionaries have claimed that the banners don’t carry the party’s name nor is concerned builder connected to their party.
Agarwal, who has multiple property related cases registered against him at the local police station, had shot into the limelight for his alleged involvement in the multi-crore Urban Land Ceiling Regulation Act (ULCRA) scam which was busted by the Thane crime branch in November 2016.
Agarwal was the first builder to be arrested by the police on charges of usurping land, that were supposed to have been surrendered to the government, by forging revenue department documents. He is currently out on bail. Like Agarwal, there are several builders on the police radar for allegedly not surrendering excess land holding to the government or giving ready-to-stay flats under the ULCRA by bribing officials.
