Congress accuses Maha govt of Rs 10,000 cr highway scam

New Delhi, Oct 18 (IANS) The Congress party has accused the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra of orchestrating a Rs 10,000 crore scam related to highway projects.

Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera, while speaking to IANS, claimed that the government awarded infrastructure projects to select companies in exchange for electoral donations, resulting in a significant loss to taxpayers.

Khera alleged that the per-km cost of construction was significantly inflated compared to similar projects in other states and those managed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

"In Maharashtra, this cost was doubled, draining Rs 10,000 crore from the taxpayers' pockets," he told IANS.

He further criticised the manipulation of tender processes, stating that the Mahayuti government bypassed legal frameworks. "Tender guidelines, such as limiting companies to two projects each, were blatantly violated. Two companies were awarded four projects each in Pune," Khera added.

He also pointed out irregularities in tunnel construction projects, claiming that while tunnel work comprised only 10 per cent of the projects, the entire project was reclassified as a "tunnel project" to favour certain companies. The Congress leader alleged that the project costs in Maharashtra were Rs 20,990 crore, compared to similar projects elsewhere priced at Rs 10,087 crore.

The Mahayuti government in Maharashtra comprises Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, BJP and Ajit Pawar-led NCP. The state is going to polls on November 20.

Talking about organised crime in Mumbai, Khera compared the current BJP-led government to the organised crime syndicates that plagued Mumbai in 1990. “Now the BJP government has pushed Mumbai into the same era. A man sitting in Gujarat jail is making such threats. How is this possible? People know all this,” he said.

Shifting his focus to pollution in Delhi, Khera criticised the government for failing to address the annual pollution crisis. "For the last decade, the government has been shifting blame and making empty promises. Now that they are in power in Punjab, they can no longer point fingers, yet the situation remains unresolved," he remarked.