NAGPUR, July 5: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) general secretary Pramod Mahajan, MP, justified the Shiv Sena-BJP government's decision to allot land near Bhadrawati Ordnance Factory in Chandrapur district to a coal company of Ispat group.

Mahajan was speaking at a press conference here on Friday, convened to clarify the decision of the alliance government to allot land for coal mining, allegedly in violation of defence norms. While refuting charges levelled against him and the alliance government by his party MP Banwarilal Purohit, the BJP leader argued for 90 minutes in favour of the government's decision to allow Ispat to extract coal from open cast mines for the group's Bhadrawati thermal power project.

When pointed out that the original agreement with the company for setting up a thermal power station near Bhadrawati was made hurriedly and in suspicious circumstances by the Narasimha Rao government, Mahajan replied that his party would support it even if it is an ``illegitimate child of the previous Congress government''.

He rejected Purohit's contention that the alliance government should have reviewed the project before allotting land for mining. Mahajan felt that there was no need to review decisions of the previous ministry as ``government was a continuous process''.

He also justified the decision saying that the Bhadrawati power project was of the utmost importance to the state. ``If such projects are not allowed to come up, then Maharashtra will soon plunge into darkness.''

About violation of defence norms, Mahajan explained that defence clearance was not required for all coal mining activities. He went on to add that the country will lose coal reserves worth several thousand crores rupees if coal mining activities were prohibited within the 25 km radius of Bhadrawati Ordnance Factory as demanded by Purohit.

He also found nothing wrong in alliance government's decision to acquire land for Ispat group's project and to construct a dam only for the purpose of providing water to the proposed Bhadrawati thermal plant.

According to him, the state government's decision to purchase coal from the Ispat group's coal company did not violate the guidelines framed by the central government for allotting captive mines.

About the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Purohit on this issue,Mahajan said, ``Court may take years for deciding the case. We cannot wait that long. We will go ahead with the project because there is no court stay as of now.''

Mahajan refuted Purohit's charge that during his brief tenure as defence minister he had managed to overrule an objection raised by the ordnance factory officials by devious means, only to serve the interests of Mittals of Ispat group.

He distributed copies of correspondence between the officials of defence ministry, coal ministry and the state government to prove that he was not at all involved in the decision though he was the defence minister at that time. Mahajan was accompanied by party leaders including Vidarbha unit organiser Arvind Shahpurkar, Mayor Devendra Phadnavis, city unit president Eknathrao Jog, secretary Girish Vyas, legislator Ashok Wadibhasme and a number of party corporators and functionaries.