Towers on NTC plot sold cheap in Mumbai's Parel; flats cost Rs 5 crore

MUMBAI: Stunning views from every apartment, luxuriously appointed lobbies, a soothing oasis of lush green spaces and cascading water bodies. That's 101 Worli, as described by its developer. All of this, built where Madhusudan Mill used to stand in Lower Parel, is now under the scanner of the CBI.

The National Textiles Corporation (NTC), which controlled the plot, has been accused of parcelling off the 6.75-acre Madhusudan mill land to a private developer for a pittance. Two 31-storey towers have come up there with luxury flats said to cost up to Rs 5 crore each.

Over the past decade, NTC always invited bids from prominent builders while disposing of defunct mill land and earned Rs 2,300 crore from five properties in central Mumbai. So two years ago, when construction started on the Madhusudan mill plot, tongues wagged in the real estate circles as to how NTC had allowed this to happen without the mandatory auction.

As reported by TOI last week, the prime plot in the heart of central Mumbai is embroiled in a controversy after the CBI filed an FIR against former Union textiles minister Shankersinh Vaghela. The other accused include former NTC CMD K Ramachandran Pillai, private company Hall & Anderson and its director Kamlesh Mehta.

The agency has booked them for selling the plot belonging to Shree Madhusudan Mills at "throwaway prices"; the builder paid just Rs 29.35 crore and the CBI estimates it led to a loss of Rs 709.27 crore to the exchequer.

Property market sources said the builder, Enpar Lotus Group, is believed to have sold over 70% of the luxury apartments. Each flat has been reportedly sold for around Rs 5 crore. Two 31-storey towers have been built and work is currently going on in full swing at the site.

The developer has published a glossy brochure, which shows three luxury towers planned on the land. Each of the 2, 3 and 5 BHK apartments come with a "400 sq ft exclusive garden terrace and floor to ceiling height of more than 12 feet".

"Many investors have booked flats in this project. Their fate is now uncertain in view of the CBI case,'' said a source, who claimed the project has the backing of a powerful state politician.

"The CBI is conducting its inquiry. This deal happened before I took charge," said NTC's western region head Bharat Shah.

NTC sources said the corporation and the builder had reached an "out-of-court" settlement some years ago on the land's ownership.
The developer Kamlesh Mehta is a former partner of the south Mumbai developer Gowani Builders. His office is located in Ashford Centre building at Lower Parel. His mobile phone has been switched off since the past several days and TOI was unable to contact him despite several attempts.