India, Nov. 16 -- The widening probe into the Mundhwa land deal linked to deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar's son Parth has placed suspended sub-registrar Ravindra Taru at the centre of controversy over unchecked authority in Maharashtra's property registration system. Taru, who granted a full stamp duty exemption for the Mundhwa plot despite the land being ineligible, and Vidya Bade Sangale, who was suspended in a separate irregular land transfer in Tathawade, now stand as markers of a deeper institutional flaw: sub-registrars wielding wide discretion in high-value transactions with minimal real-time monitoring.

The decisions taken at the registration desk without complete verification of land classification, eligibility for exemptions, ...