HC order on Gurgaon land spells more trouble for DLF

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DLF’s dream of building another luxury premium project near the Golf Course Road, Gurgaon, has been hit by a recent order of the Punjab and Haryana high court, setting aside the Haryana government’s allotment of 350 acres.

The land was acquired in an auction for Rs 1,750 crore in 2009-10. The allotment was challenged by farmers and a village panchayat in 2011. In 2012, the HC asked DLF not to carry out any construction or create third-party rights on the lot.

This plot is behind DLF Phase-V and near Sectors 42, 53 and 54. The recreational and luxury project planned on the lot in question would have included a golf course, a low-rise residential complex and commercial properties such as service apartments, hotels and a sports complex, convention centre and food court.

DLF might have suffered another jolt to its brand because of the latest court verdict, two brokers tracking the National Capital Region market told Business Standard.

It has premium projects around the Golf Course road — The Camellias, The Crest, The Aralias and The Magnolias. Currently, one of the most expensive apartments by DLF here has been priced at Rs 25,000/sq ft and many experts say this future project (at a place called Wazirabad) could have been priced at Rs 35,000-40,000/sq ft, going by the local trend.

In a statement to the BSE exchange, DLF said the High Court, while upholding the acquisition, had made some observations regarding the allotment; a copy of the order was still awaited. “The land was awarded to DLF by two rounds of international competitive bidding,” it said.

DLF had emerged as the sole bidder for the 350-acre project after the bids of other parties — Unitech and a Malaysia-based consortium comprising Country Heights, Country Club of South Africa and Rajarhat IT Park — could not qualify on technical grounds. The qualified bidder, DLF, had bid at Rs 12,000 a sq metre against the reserve price of Rs 11,978 a sq metre. The letter of acceptance was issued by Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation.

Last week, the Supreme Court directed DLF to deposit Rs 630 crore in its registry within three months, rejecting a request to stay an order of the Competition Commission of India which had imposed the penalty for unfair trade practices at its Belaire project in Gurgaon.

HOUSE OF CARDS

• The Wazirabad plot is behind DLF Phase V and near to Sectors 42, 53 and 54
• The land was acquired in an auction for Rs 1,750 crore in 2009-10
• The allotment was challenged by farmers and a village panchayat in 2011. In 2012, the HC asked DLF not to carry out any construction or create third-party rights on the lot
• The recreational and luxury project was planned for a Golf course, a low-rise residential complex and commercial properties such as service apartments hotels and a sports complex