HC quashes lease for 40 acres land given to Jaypee group's

The Allahabad High Court today quashed the lease for 40 acres of land granted to a trust run by Jaypee group to set up a private university in western Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr district.
A division bench comprising Justice Arun Tandon and Justice Rituraj Awasthi passed the order on the petition filed by one Nathimal who had challenged the lease granted to Jayprakash Seva Sansthan, a trust run by Jaypee group, in 2009 for a period of 90 years.
The petitioner had claimed that the lessee was asked to pay a paltry sum of Rs 40,000 annually by way of rent which had resulted in an estimated loss of about Rs 24 crore to the state exchequer.

Passing the order, the court said that the district magistrate of Bulandshahr shall re-evaluate the land and if the lessee agreed to pay the rent as per the actual value, then the same "may be re-allotted".
The court also rapped the Nagar Palika Parishad (municipal board) of Anoopshahr, which had transferred the land in the lessee's name, for failure to hold an auction in accordance with the state government's policy before granting the lease in favour of a private party.