Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Thursday allowed a Dubai-based firm to challenge the Maharashtra government's recent decision awarding the much awaited Dharavi slum redevelopment project to Adani Group. A division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Sanjay V Gangapurwala and Justice S G Chapalgaonkar allowed Seclink, a Dubai-based firm, to challenge the said award.
The company had filed the plea in the court before the government awarded the Dharavi project, spread over an area of 557 acres to Adani Realty, the real estate arm of the Adani Group. The High Court on Thursday allowed Seclink to amend its plea against the selection of Adani Realty.
Also read: Adani Group wins bid to redevelop Mumbai's Dharavai, Asia's largest slum
Counsel Sooraj Iyer, appearing for Seclink, pointed out to the High Court that the company backed by the King of Saudi Arabia had placed a bid of Rs 7,200 crore for the project in 2019 against Adani after the tender for Dharavi redevelopment was floated by the Maharashtra government for the first time in 2018.
But it was cancelled later. Advocate Milind Sathe, appearing for the Dharavi Redevelopment Authority, said the 2018 tender was cancelled because additional 45 acres of railway land was acquired, which necessitated a new tender. However, Iyer countered that there was no material change between the first tender and the latest one with both having a mention of the railway land.
Iyer claimed that Adani's company had bid only for Rs 4,300 crore at that time and therefore could not have won the bid then. He said specific conditions were put in place to deliberately prevent Seclink from bidding a second time. Adani Realty recently won the tender for Dharavi redevelopment with a bid of Rs 5,069 crore.
Considering the argument, the bench said that since the writ petition is still at preliminary stage, it can be revised. The next hearing will be held on January 6. Significantly, Congress state president Nana Patole, in a media interaction earlier this month lashed out at the BJP government on the allotment of Dharavi project to the Adani Group at a reduced cost of Rs 5,000 crore.
Patole alleged that the state government cancelled the tender allotment of Dubai's Seclink for Rs 7,500 crore and instead handed it over to an industrialist at a lower cost.
