MUMBAI: Housing authority Mhada on Wednesday told the Bombay high
court that developer HDIL and its subsidiary Guruashish Construction held by the Wadhawan family “misappropriated almost Rs 2000 crore”.
Guruashish had signed an agreement with Mhada and Patra Chawl residents to redevelop the 10-acre land in 2008. The project is incomplete. Mhada terminated its agreement with Guruashish in January. Over half a dozen builders had then moved the HC to protect development rights they acquired from Guruashish for the free-sale component. The high court restrained Mhada from taking coercive action against these builders.
The 10-acre project land is part of a 48-acre Mhada layout in Siddarth Nagar and is estimated to be worth over Rs 1,200 crore. A public sector bank had also dragged the builder before the National Law Company Tribunal (NCLT) Mumbai, for insolvency after it failed to repay a loan. The tribunal had put a moratorium on it, but had dismissed a plea to restrain Mhada from repossessing its land from Guruashish.
Meanhwile in a related development, the HC was told that National Company Law Appellate Tribunal in Delhi on Wednesday passed orders to restrain Mhada from taking any coercive steps. The Delhi-based appellate tribunal posted to April 6 a challenge against the NCLT order, said Navroz Seervai counsel for an officer appointed to take over the construction company’s affairs through insolvency proceedings and sought that the HC could hear the builders’ plea after that date. On Wednesday, complying with earlier HC directions, HDIL and its director Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan submitted two trunks of disclosure of assets, including personal assets and bank balance and income tax returns since 2011. Its counsel, Arif Bookwala, submitted their affidavits in a sealed cover to Justice S J Kathawalla and sought they they remain in a sealed cover. But Pravin Samdani, counsel for one of the builders who had moved the HC to ensure protection of his rights, submitted that the order seeking disclosure of their assets never said the affidavit has to be given in a sealed cover. However, Justice Kathwalla said this issue would be decided later on April 13. Bookwala proposed that HDIL be allowed to complete the construction under court supervision, subject to whatever order is now passed by NCLAT also.
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