A Profitable Partnership

The Adarsh Housing Society scandal is not about Ashok Chavan or any of his illustrious predecessors using the office of the chief minister of Maharashtra for private (family) benefit. It is about the loot of Mumbai’s resources to fill political coffers and providing housing/commercial space to only those who can afford it.

An alliance between the real estate lobby and political parties in Maharashtra has always exploited common land for private benefit in the land-scarce island-city. This enterprise, which has captured the State and draws on occasional help from the underworld, has reached new heights in “booming” India in which the returns from state capture have correspondingly grown. The only thing unique about Adarsh is that the agents have happened to have fallen under the public spotlight.