The Pune police on Wednesday arrested Sheetal Kisanchand Tejwani (44), the power of attorney (PoA) holder for 272 original holders of the Mahar Watan land parcel at Mundhwa, over alleged irregularities linked to suspended tehsildar Suryakant Yeole’s illegal orders granting government land to private parties.
This is the first arrest in the case, which is being investigated by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) and registered with the Khadak Police Station.
One of the beneficiaries of the illegal orders was Amadea Enterprises LLP, in which Parth Pawar, son of Maharashtra deputy CM Ajit Pawar, is a partner. Amadea had entered into an agreement with Tejwani, the PoA holder, to purchase a 40-acre government land parcel in Mundhwa, currently occupied by the Botanical Survey of India (BSI). While Parth Pawar is not named in the FIR, Amadea’s other partner, Digvijay Amarsinh Patil, along with Yeole and six others, have been named.
Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar stated that Tejwani was arrested based on documentary evidence collected so far. Tejwani had previously approached the state revenue department three times since 2006, claiming ownership rights via PoA; all her claims were rejected, including by the Bombay High Court.
Despite this, in May 2025, Tejwani paid a Rs 11,000 challan to the revenue department to process the land deal documents, which were then used in the transaction with Amadea Enterprises. The EOW had summoned her twice in November for questioning and recorded her statements.
A senior EOW officer explained that the land belongs to the state government under the Bombay Inferior Village Watans Abolition Act, 1958, which abolished hereditary ownership of Mahar Watan lands. Tejwani and others allegedly paid minor amounts to the original landholders to secure PoA documents, which were later used to sell the land illegally.
The Khadak FIR includes charges under Sections 201, 316(2)(5), 318(3)(4), 336(3)(4), 338, 340, 61(2), and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for forgery, cheating, criminal conspiracy, and misuse of documents.
Tejwani and Digvijay Patil, along with suspended sub-registrar Ravindra Taru, are also named in another FIR by Bavdhan Police, alleging conspiracy to register a sale deed on May 20, 2025, causing Rs 6 crore revenue loss to the government.
The investigation continues, with the police examining the roles of all individuals named in the FIR and others who may emerge during the probe.
