R R Patil blames Khot for negligence

Mumbai, May 13 (UNI) Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil today put the blame for the Supreme Court verdict against a state Minister and bureaucrat on the latter saying that he should have prepared a proper note before submitting it the minister for final approval.

Talking to UNI about the arrest of their cabinet colleague Surupsingh Naik, Mr Patil said the secretary Ashok Khot should have studied the issue thoroughly before submitting it to the minister.

Surupsingh Naik was forced to resign yesterday and he surrendered to the police in the early morning hours today after being awarded a month's simple imprisonment by the Supreme Court.

On wednesday, the a Supreme Court bench, comprising Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal, Justice Arijit Pasayat and Justice S H Kapadia had sentenced Mr Naik and Mr Khot, then state Forest Secretary to one month's simple imprisonment, holding them guilty of the contempt of Court.

The bench found the duo guilty of willful and deliberate disobedience of court's order, passed in 1997. The Court had directed the state government not to renew the licences of saw mills, on the grounds that it was damaging the environment.

The duo, however, permitted six such mills to operate, in 2004, in violation of the Supreme Court's order.

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