Once Upon a Time in Bombay
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8 Companies THE ECONOMIC TIMES | MUMBAI | MONDAY | 23 NOVEMBER 2015 Tata Hsg, Neptune to AFFIDAVIT IN BOMBAY HIGH COURT REVIVES MEMORIES OF FAMOUS CORPORATE BATTLE Develop City Project Once Upon a Time in Bombay In his affidavit filed on the civil def- wife Amita Nayar Bajaj was then Realty cos join hands The Real Deal Sugata Ghosh & Maulik Vyas amation case, Bajaj alleged that the the Delhi Bureau Chief of The Af- The Project reports which appeared in The Dai- ternoon, another paper controlled to develop residential Mumbai: On August 17, 1993, The ly were part of an underlying busi- by Morarka, alleges that there were 1.2 m sq ft: Development Daily, a now defunct tabloid, pub- ness deal between Kamal Morarka hints that he could get into trouble project in 10 acres potential of the project at lished a string of reports about — the owner of the newspaper and if he did follow the instructions. Je- of land in Bhandup Bhandup Nusli Wadia, spread over the entire head of the construction and engi- sudasan and Neogi are not respon- front and back pages of the newspa- neering company Gannon Dunker- dents in the case filed by Wadia. ` : 12,500 per. The stories alleged that Wadia, ley — and Reliance Industries As per the affidavit, a few days af- [email protected] Rate per sq ft grandson of Muhammad Ali Jin- (RIL). The long and bitter tussle be- ter the reports appeared, Kalantri at which cos nah and chairman of Bombay Dye- tween Dhirubhai Ambani, RIL’s asked Bajaj to accompany him for a Mumbai: Tata Housing Develop- are launching it ing, was a Pakistani spy having founder and Nusli Wadia is part of meeting with Dhirubhai Ambani ment Company has entered into Action Plan links with Dawood Ibrahim, and corporate history. According to Ba- at the Reliance office in Maker IV, an agreement with Mumbai- Tata Housing to conceptualise, was involved in smuggling drugs jaj’s allegations, he was pushed into Nariman Point. Bajaj alleges that based real estate developer Nep- construct and market the project and laundering money through a carrying the reports by Anthony the elder Ambani complimented tune Group to jointly develop a bank in Nepal. One of the stories al- (aka Tony) Jesudasan and Deepak him on the articles. 10-acre residential project in Neptune Group will provide the so talked about his alleged associ- Neogi, who worked as PR officials of ET could not independently sub- Bhandup, an eastern suburb of land parcel and secure nods from ation with Anita Ayub, a Pakistani the undivided Reliance group, and stantiate or verify any of the allega- Mumbai, according to two per- civic authority starlet. This was five months after businessman Vijay Kalantri, who Nusli Wadia, Chairman, Wadia Group FILE PHOTO tions by Bajaj who refused to re- sons familiar with the matter. the Bombay serial blasts whose per- was close to Morarka and often spond to text message. Going by the Neptune Group will provide the cently with the final terms that petrators were widely believed to passed on instructions on his be- denied the allegations while Jesu- also went unanswered till the time affidavit, the obvious questions that land parcel and secure approvals provide for branding of the pro- have fled to Pakistan. half. Bajaj alleges that subsequent dasan and Neogi (who later left Re- of going to press. crops up are: first, why did Bajaj, as from the civic authority, while ject jointly by both the parties In October 1993, Wadia, who was to the publication of the reports, liance Industries to join the Anil The sequence of events, as alleged editor, let Reliance officials and Ka- Tata Housing, the real estate arm while sharing revenues in a cer- then rebuilding his textile busi- Gannon Dunkerley received sever- Ambani group) did not comment. by Bajaj, is outlined in the affidavit: lantri allegedly dictate the terms? of Tata Group, will take care of tain proportion,” said one of the ness and planning his moves to al orders from Reliance. “I am not aware of this affidavit but A day before the reports were pub- Second, what made Bajaj wait so conceptualisation, construction persons, who did not wish to be take control of Britannia, filed civ- When contacted by ET, both Mo- I am appalled to hear from you that lished, Kalantri visited Bajaj’s Dai- long to come out with what he claims and marketing the project. identified. To take the partner- il and criminal defamation suits rarka and Kalantri categorically Rajiv Bajaj has said this in the affi- ly office and handed him papers are the “true facts that led to publica- The project, estimated to have ship further, both the develop- against Rajiv K Bajaj, managing ed- davit. This is absolutely untrue. I signed by 72 members of Parlia- tion of the articles”? According to total development potential of ers were earlier also consider- itor, Phiroze J Dastur, printer and have never interfered with the edi- ment accusing Nusli Wadia of hav- the affidavit, Bajaj, who was in fi- 1.2 million square feet, has al- ing a space-sharing formula, Mohan Nair, publisher, and Daily KAMAL MORARKA torial functions of my newspapers ing multiple passports and being a nancial difficulties at the time of the Owner of The Daily ready secured all approvals to which did not materialise, the Printing & Allied Enterprises, the though I have always given my full drug dealer. Bajaj was told that the publication of the story, was assured commence the work. Construc- person said. corporate entity which owned ‘Dai- I am not aware of this af- support to my editors and this is to papers, purported to be findings of that his wife and daughter, who were tion of the project is expected to Email queries to both Tata ly’. Kamal Morarka’s company Na- the knowledge of Rajiv Bajaj,” said the Intelligence Bureau, were re- staying in Delhi then, would join be completed in four years. Housing and Neptune Group did landa Exports appointed advocates fidavit but I am appalled Morarka in an email to ET. ceived from the office of RIL and him in Mumbai once the newspaper The project on LBS Marg, once not elicit any response until late to represent the defendants. Kalantri, the chairman and MD of had been handed over to the then runs the stories. Bajaj, who is no known for industrial factories evening on Sunday. Like most defamation cases, this to hear that Rajiv K Bajaj Balaji Infra Projects and Dighi home minister Shankar Rao Chav- longer receiving any legal support but now transformed into a ma- The land parcel to be developed too, would have languished and Port said (in an email): “This dis- han. Neogi, who was then report- from his former employer, finally fil- jor residential hub, is expected to under the joint venture is part of been forgotten. But it didn’t. Last has said this. This is ab- closure looks highly imaginative ing to Jesudasan, handed over the ed the affidavit on the civil matter af- fetch revenue of `. 1,700 crore. 22 acres of land that Neptune week — more than two decades and I do not recall any such discus- articles, along with the headings ter reading a newspaper report that Ready apartments in the locality Group had acquired through an since the suits were filed — Bajaj, solutely untrue. I have sion or facilitation nor I had any- and blurbs, with the instruction the High Court has reopened the are priced at about `. 17,000-18,000 auction conducted in 2005. the then editor of The Daily, filed thing to do with The Daily.” that the pieces should be carried ad criminal defamation case after 15 per sq ft, while Tata and Neptune In one of the most expensive an affidavit before the Bombay never interfered with the Wadia group legal head Parveen litteram. Jesudasan, according to years. It was perhaps then that he are considering launching the land transactions then, the de- High Court, with allegations that Mahtani did not respond to text Bajaj, told him that if he did not panicked. In the affidavit Bajaj said project at `. 12,500 per sq ft. veloper had emerged as highest revived memories of the most cele- editorial functions messages from ET. publish the articles someone else he is willing to depose before the “The agreement was inked re- bidder with its bid of `. 101 crore. brated battle in corporate India. ET’s email to a spokesman for RIL in the Daily would. Bajaj, whose court and give evidence. 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