Gandhinagar: When Ahmedabad-based fake PMO official Kiran Patel was held in Srinagar by Jammu & Kashmir Police this month, he was accompanied by two men from Gujarat, Amit Hitesh Pandya and Jay Sitapara. While Kiran Patel was arrested, the others were allowed to go. However, the J&K Police has recently called Amit Pandya and Jay Sitapara for questioning in this case.

Pandya was made ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s social media incharge for North Gujarat region last year. He is son of former journalist Hitesh Pandya who works as Public Relation Officer (PRO) in Gujarat Chief Minister’s office. While Amit has been reportedly relieved from the primary membership of party, Hitesh Pandya’s exit is believed certain.

Hitesh Pandya has been PRO in Gujarat Chief Minister’s office for the last two decades under four different Chief Ministers. His office was earlier located in the Chief Minister’s official residence. However recently he was shifted to Chief Minister’s office. Hitesh Pandya is originally from Rajkot but he has purchased a flat in Bopal and he also has two Government quarters in the State capital Gandhinagar. According to a report in Gujarati daily Sandesh newspaper, two government bungalows allotted to Hitesh Pandya are in the super-class one category in sector 19. While bungalow number 256/1 has been allotted to his cook, the other bungalow 286/1 has been in the name of ‘Nation First Foundation’. Fake PMO officer Kiran Patel recently organized an event to mark G20 presidentship to India in a five-star hotel in Ahmedabad under the title of ‘Rashtra Pratham’ which is a Hindi/Gujarati translation of ‘Nation First’ foundation that Hitesh Pandya runs.

Son Amit Pandya owns three companies – One Digitech Force Pvt Ltd, Krupam Solutions LLP, and Earthlink Sources LLP. His brand name Safe Solutions has got hundreds of contracts for CCTV for other solutions. It is reportedly under the scanner, that how many of them were Government orders. According to Gujarati daily Sandesh’s news report, most CCTV contracts of the government would go to Pandya’s firm in recent years.

Observers believe the office bearers closely linked to Kiran Patel, who has been booked in more than one case for faking self as a PMO official may have to pay price. DeshGujarat