COURTESY: TNN Feb 10, 2012
GURGAON / CHANDIGARH: Allotment of around 350 acre prime land, acquired for public purpose by Haryana government, to real estate giant DLF for developing luxurious golf villas and golf course in Gurgaon has come under the scanner of Punjab and Haryana high court.
The HC on Thursday issued notices to the state government and DLF seeking their response on the issue. Division bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi has also issued notices to Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) and Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) asking them to file a reply by April 19. DLF is developing air conditioned apartments/villas and an 18-hole golf course on the land under the project 'The Magnolias'.
A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed by Omprakash Mukdam, a resident of Wazirabad village in Gurgaon. The petitioner has alleged that acting on the instance DLF, Haryana government acquired the land for 'public purpose' to develop recreational/ leisure project and then issued it to M/s DLF Ltd, jeopardizing the interest of general public and inhabitants of Wazirabad village.
The PIL also sought quashing of the letter of allotment of the land in favour of DLF. The petitioner says the ownership of the land should be transferred back to the gram panchayat of Wazirabad. Mukdam submitted before the HC that HUDA acquired a total of around 350-acre land of Wazirabad village on two occasions for 'public purposes'.
First, 75 acres of land was acquired through notification of September 8, 1997 and then around 275 acres of land was acquired through notification of August 8, 2003. Subsequently the land was transferred by HUDA to HSIIDC, which on February 9, 2010 transferred it to M/s DLF Ltd on free hold basis.
Even the process of allotment to DLF from the agencies of the state has been questioned. The land was allotted through a bid in which for all practical purposes DLF was the only qualified bidder because the other two bidders were disqualified on account of 'technical error'.
The land cost DLF Rs1750 crore. Narinder Singh, petitioner's counsel, said the allotment process appears to benefit DLF, as the real estate company could not have acquired the land directly to set up it 'dream project'.
