The row over advertisement from Assotech Sungrowth Abode llP, promising to give affordable houses in Jharkhand, launched on Monday this week is heading towards lock-horn between few of the departments and officials with one another.
A day after Rajya Sabha MP Mahesh Poddar wrote a letter to the Urban Development Department requesting it to clarify about why the company used his name as a guest without even inviting him, Urban Development Department Minister CP Singh said that the matter was not brought to his notice yet and it would be unfair to comment over something he was not familiar with.
The row also appears to intensify in days to come as the company involved in the whole episode, Assotech Sungrowth Abode llP which claims to construct 3,000 flats in Jharkhand in phased manner with 600 flats to be constructed in first phase, maintained on the day that it possessed all documents from relative departments to prove that the advertisement was not misleading, if and when time came to prove it.
Urban Development Department Principal Secretary Arun Kumar Singh, at the same time, said that he was yet to receive letter by Poddar and the department would decide course of action on the company or content of reply to the MP only after he went through it. He, on the other hand, completely downplayed seriousness of the issue and called the letter written to him, Department Minister Singh and CM Raghubar Das by Mahesh Poddar more a publicity stunt by the latter.
Notably, in a letter written to Urban Development Department Principal Secretary Arun Kumar Singh and copied to the Department Minister and the CM dated December 26, Poddar said that the advertisement in which his name was used as a guest without even him being invited, was misleading and created confusion among common people, hence department was expected to clarify publically about its stand on it.
CP Singh on Thursday admitted that he was invited to the programme, but said that as he was sure of not remaining present in ground breaking ceremony of the project due to his pre-scheduled engagements which he had even informed the realty company officials, his picture from advertisement could have been avoided.
Citing example of Sanjeevani scam in State in past, Poddar in his letter raised concerns over safety and security of hard earned money of the poor who were to invest in project after seeing the advertisement. He also raised questions over project being named as affordable housing and said that any flat at a rate of around Rs 4,000 per square feet was not at all affordable from any angle.
The company in its advertisement with Jharkhand government’s logo, pictures of Prime Minister and Chief Minister, Mahesh Poddar and CP Singh claimed that it was developing units for economically weaker section of the society under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (PMAY-Urban) in Ranchi. Hence, the row is also expected to take an ugly turn as none of the government officials or departments has questioned motive of the company for presenting such facts without prior approval.