Hanging fire for four years after the Congress government in Himachal cancelled the 28 acres land leased to Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust, Yoga Guru Ramdev’s ambitious project in Solan district may finally see the light of the day.
After the state cabinet decided to consider restoration of land leased to the Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust on Friday provided the Trust withdrew the case against the government’s earlier decision of cancellation, a spokesperson of the Trust showed willingness to do the same.
“The Himachal government has taken a positive step for the benefit of people of state, who will get employment and other benefits,” Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust’s spokesperson, SK Tijarawala said.
“The state government had earlier taken a decision motivated by politics. If it is correcting the things now, we have no problems in withdrawing the court case. We were correct earlier also and are so, now. We stand vindicated,” he told The Statesman.
A couple of days before the state cabinet took up the matter, Chief Minister, Virbhadra Singh had indicated in media that no irregularity had been found in allotment of land granted on lease to Baba Ramdev’s Trust.
Singh had said the government had looked at the issue afresh and had reached on the conclusion that there was no violation.
The government’s ‘U’ turn on the issue has much more to it than meets the eye, as the lease of land to Ramdev’s Trust in Solan district by the previous BJP government was at the centre of state politics during the assembly polls in 2012.
The Congress, while in opposition previously, had listed it as a major point in its chargesheet against the then BJP government.
In 2010, the then BJP government had allotted land on lease to Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust, Haridwar (Uttarakhand) for establishing a branch of Yog and Ayurved related Medical Science Research and Health, Tourism and production of herbal medicinal plants at Sadhu Pul in Solan. The project was likely to generate employment for 5000 persons initially and the number could further go high later.
The lease agreement for 99 years involved a payment of Rs 17 lakh by the Ramdev Trust, along with a token payment of Rupee one per annum during the lease period.
However, immediately after coming into power, the Congress government had cancelled the Trust’s lease agreement in February 2013, claiming that the land rules were violated in the grant of lease.
Following this, the Trust, which had by then invested Rs 11 Crore on the land allotted to it, had filed petition in the High Court, alleging serious discrepancies in the state government’s move to cancel the lease.
The High Court had stayed the government action at the facility created on the land allotted to the Trust and had stopped the Police to take possession of the land.