Mr. Robert Vadra, the
son-in-law of Congress Party president Ms. Sonia Gandhi, had bought as many as
about 40 premium apartments from DLF Ltd. But subsequently sold most of them at
a profit.
All the flats were
acquired by companies promoted by him, including Sky Light Hospitality - which
had dealings with DLF Ltd by paying a minimum booking amount, with the
exception of a luxury pad in the picturesque Aralias, for which he paid the
entire sum of Rs. 11.9 crore upfront.
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Robert Vadra
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Mr. Robert Vadra, whose dealings with India's biggest
real estate company DLF Ltd has come under the lens in the past 2 weeks, booked
apartments in 3 premium projects: Aralias & Magnolias in Gurgaon and
Capital Greens in Moti Nagar in Delhi.
He used a part of the
Rs. 58 crore advance paid by DLF Ltd (for purchasing a 3.5 acre plot of land
from him in Gurgaon) for booking these flats.
Most of these flats
were bought for the purpose of trading as Mr. Rober Vadra sold about 38 of these 40 apartments
subsequently, said a DLF Ltd executive.
A DLF Ltd spokesman
confirmed Mr. Robert Vadra had bought these flats in the 3 projects. He also
said that the client had later paid about Rs. 7 crore as delayed payment
charges.
During 2009 and 2010,
Robert Vadra bought about 25 flats in DLF Capital Greens, a premium
project constructed on a 38 acre land that DLF Ltd acquired from DCM Shriram
& the Lohia Group in 2007 for Rs. 1,675 crore. While the builder launched
the first phase of the project at around Rs. 4,500 to Rs. 5,500 per square
feet, the prices subsequently increased to Rs. 10,000 per square feet. Mr.
Robert Vadra brought these flats in the first phase & sold them in 2010 -
11.
Mr. Robert Vadra also booked 15 flats in DLF Magnolias, a
premium project next to a company-owned golf course on the Gurgaon Golf Course
road that is nearing completion. Of these, he has already sold 13 flats
& still retains 2 flats.
"These kinds of
dealings are not uncommon in the Indian real estate sector. These are people
who book huge number of flats & then
sell them when the prices go up.
Investment &
Trading purposes.!
Mr. Robert Vadra was
only one of them, and certainly not the biggest. A real estate consultant who
declined to be named said more than 75% real estate bought in the national
capital region is for investment & trading purposes, with Gurgaon being a
particular favourite of HNIs (high-networth investors).
Recently an investor
booked 50 flats in the Noida Extension region, in the hope that prices will
soar soon. Some of these investors are well organised & call themselves
underwriters. These moneyed investors are often blamed for the high prices of
houses in India, especially in the NCR region, as they often strike bulk deals
at good bargains when projects are launched, denying genuine house buyers the
opportunity to buy. These investors hold on to their huge inventory and sell it
at a higher price.
Interest Free
Unsecured Loan..!
Activist turned
politician Mr. Arvind Kejriwal has called for a probe into the dealings between
DLF Ltd & Vadra. He had alleged that DLF Ltd gave an interest free
unsecured loan of Rs. 65 crore to Vadra & these funds were, in turn, used
to buy real estate assets from the company, including apartments in Gurgaon at
vastly discounted prices as well as a 50 per cent stake in a DLF hotel in South
Delhi.
DLF Ltd has denied
any wrong doing and said its dealings with Mr. Robert Vadra were clean. It said
it gave an advance, and not an unsecured loan, for buying a about 3.5 acre plot
of land, which is a standard practice in the real estate sector. It says all
its transactions with Mr. Vadra were at market rates. The government has
refused to take up the issue suo moto.
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