Maharashtra govt suspends ex-Beed collector arrested in Rs 241-cr scam

The Maharashtra government has suspended former Beed collector Avinash Pathak, arrested in a Rs 241 crore land acquisition compensation scam, with effect from his arrest date.

The Maharashtra government has issued a suspension order against former Beed collector Avinash Pathak, who was arrested in connection with an alleged land acquisition compensation scam running into Rs 241 crore, officials said.

Pathak (55), a 2013-batch IAS officer, was arrested in Latur by a Special Investigation Team of the Beed police on May 7 and is currently in judicial custody.

As per a release from the state revenue department, Pathak has been formally suspended, and the order comes into effect from the date of his arrest.

During his suspension, Pathak's officially designated headquarters will remain in Beed, it stated.

According to police, a case had been registered at the Shivajinagar police station in Beed against 10 persons, including Pathak, over allegations of fraudulent land acquisition compensation orders.

The police said fake compensation approvals were issued using Pathak's name, designation, and forged signatures even after his transfer from Beed district.

Pathak, a native of Latur, had earlier served as Additional District Collector in Latur during the COVID-19 pandemic. He had also worked as a Land Acquisition Officer in Dharashiv district.

He has been booked under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections, including 318 (4) (cheating and dishonestly inducing the delivery of property), 316 (5) (criminal breach of trust), 338, 336(3) and 340 (2) (all linked to forgery), 198 (public servant disobeying law), 351(4) (criminal intimidation), along with sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.