The Bombay High Court receiver, appointed by the Supreme Court to take over the management of Sahara Group’s Aamby Valley luxury township near Pune, has told the property’s CEO Vivek Kumar that the process of taking ‘symbolic possession of Aamby Valley City’ would begin Monday, Dec 11.
In a communique sent on Friday, Dec 8, the receiver asked Kumar to be present at the properties ‘on the date and time mentioned in the schedule’ with all relevant documents and also ‘to intimate concerned persons at the sites about the said visit’.
The Supreme Court, on Nov 23 last, had ordered the official receiver at the Bombay High Court to take over the management of affairs of Aamby Valley, to ensure that the auction of the property proceeds smoothly. There had been allegations that a previous attempt to sell the property was obstructed. There was also fear of encroachment and the possibility of not finding any bidder for it, according to media reports.
The bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and judges Ranjan Gogoi and A K Sikri said: “The duty of the receiver is to see the valuation is not reduced and the property is maintained.”
The takeover by court receiver will end control and possession of the Sahara group over the Rs 37,000-crore property, spread across 43 sq km off Lonavla, on the Mumbai-Pune Highway.
Earlier this year, the Court had ordered the township’s auction after Sahara failed to pay the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) the amount fixed by the court’s 2012 order. SC had originally ordered Sahara India Real Estate and Sahara Housing Invest Corp to refund Rs 24,029 crore raised from 29.6 million investors, along with an interest of 15 per cent. Sahara repaid only Rs 5,120 crore and claimed the rest was refunded to the investors directly. The court did not buy this argument and sent group chief Subrata Roy to Delhi’s Tihar jail in 2014.
Roy was released on parole in 2016 and some amount was paid in instalments. With delay, however, interest on the due accumulated and the dues mounted to over Rs 40,000 crore. The court ordered the auction of Aamby Valley as the final option to end the proceedings that have dragged on for seven years.
Outward No. of 2017. Bank of India Building, 2nd Floor,
(G.C.P.)J1879(1,25,000112007)
Mahatma Gandhi Marg,
Tel. No.22670219 (Office) Fort, Mumbai – 400 023
From : D. R. Shetty, Date :8th December, 2017
COURT RECEIVER, HIGH COURT, BOMBAY
To,
Mr. Vivek Kumar
C.E.O., AambyValley City
Hotel Sahara Star,
Opp. Domestic Airport,
VileParle
(East)
Mumbai 400 057.
Sub. :Compliance of the order dated 23/11/2017 passed by Hon’ble Supreme Court in the matter of Securities And Exchange Board of India V/s Subrata Roy Sahara & Ors.
Ref. :order dated 23rd November, 2017 in Conmt. Petition (c) Nos. 18201822/2017 in Conmt. Pet. (c) Nos. 412 and 413/2012 in C.A. Nos. 9813 and 9833/2011
Sir,
Apropos of the subject referred above, I am directed to inform you that as per above referred order, Court Receiver, High Court, Bombay is appointed as official Receiver in respect of Aamby Valley City. In compliance of this order, Court Receiver, High Court, Bombay has fixed an appointment to take symbolic possession of Aamby Valley City at Lonavala and properties belonging to Aamby Valley Limited at Village Dabhedabhekar, Tal. Mahabaleshwar, Sambhukhed, Tal. Mann, and Yerphale, Tal.Patan, Dist. Satara as per the schedule given below.
Therefore, you are requested to remain present on the date and time mentioned in the schedule given below with your officers along with documents of title, revenue records, survey record, approved maps, licenses, contracts, agency agreements, seal and stamp of your office and other necessary documents. You are also requested that the extra sets of copies of all these documents be brought on site. You are further requested to intimate concerned persons at the sites about the said visit.
Yours faithfully,
Sd/COURT
RECEIVER.
Schedule
Description of properties Date of
visit/appointment
1 Aamby Valley City, Taluka – Mulshi, Lonavala, Dist. Pune – 11/12/2017 at 9.30 a.m.
2 Aamby Valley Limited property, Gat No.76 at village Yerphale, Tal. Patan, Dist. Satara – 12/12/2017 at 9.00 a.m.
3 Aamby Valley Limited Property, Gat No.334, 287, 298, 321A,321B, 321C, 338 and 320 at Village Sambhukhed, Tal. Mann, Dist, Satara – 12/12/2017 at 2.00 p.m.
4 Aamby Valley Limited Property, Gat No. 2/66, 10/74 Village Dabhedabhekar, Tal. Mahabaleshwar, Dist. Satara – 13/12/2017 at 10.00 a.m
Encl.:Copy of order dated 23.11.2017 of Hon’ble Supreme Court.