Bigger India Footprints

Donald Trump, US President elect and founder, Trump Organisation 

The election of property tycoon, Donald Trump as the new President of America, may well herald the beginning of a new era of larger footprint of Trump brand on Indian real estate, especially after the group’s recent tie-up with Gurgaon-based developer, Ireo for an office complex and with M3M for a residential project. 

Currently, the upscale Trump brand has its footprint in Mumbai, Pune & Delhi through its India partner, Kaplesh Mehta of Tribeca. 

Trump has five ongoing projects in India, with a gross development value of about $ 1 billion. Mumbai-based Lodha Group is developing an uber luxe 75- storey residential project-Trump Tower. 

Pune-based Panchshil Realty's Trump Tower is also under development in Pune. According to Mehta, Trump Organisation, founded by Donald Trump, is looking to expand in India by launching few more projects in 2017. This is endorsed by Donald Trump Jr, Executive Vice President of the company, who said that the Trump Organisation was bullish on India for building a pan- India footprint for Trump- branded residential and office projects.

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Land(ing) in Trouble  

Robert Vadra

There seemed to be no  end to the troubles of Robert Vadra, the  businessman son-in-law of Sonia Gandhi, in the wake of a report submitted by one- man Justice SN Dhingra Commission set up by Haryana government to probe controversial land deals in Gurgaon,  involving certain companies including Sky Light Hospitality, owned by Vadra.

Vadra has been accused of transferring his license for the development of colonies, group housing societies and commercial complexes to DLF,  in violation of the law.  

Justice Dhingra Commission report found irregularities in the land licenses allotted to various companies in Gurgaon by the erstwhile Congress government. Earlier, a report by Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG) had found irregularities in the land licenses granted to Vadra’s company.Denying any irregularities, Vadra had called it political witch hunt. In a related development, Rajasthan High Court asked the representatives of Skylight Hospitality, to appear for interrogation before the Enforcement Directorate in connection with land transactions in Bikaner, Rajasthan. The ED had earlier issued the summons under the provisions of Money Laundering Act over alleged purchase of 275 bigha land in Bikaner. Vadra had however denied any irregularities.

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Reprieve At last

Subrata Roy, Group Chief, Sahara India 

The year brought a much awaited relief to Sahara Group chief, Subrata Roy, who was finally released on parole by the Supreme Court in May, after spending two years in jail.Roy, along with two group directors, was in judicial custody since March 4, 2014, for failing to comply with apex court’s orders in 2012, relating to refund of over Rs 24,000 crore, raised from 3 crore bond investors by two group companies — Sahara India Real Estate Corporation & Sahara Housing Invest Corporation. In 2014, the apex court had set a bail  of Rs 5,000 crore in cash and an equal amount as bank guarantee. From May onwards, Roy’s parole has been extended four times. According to SEBI’s submission before Supreme Court, Sahara had remitted a total of Rs 10,780.75 crore and the company still needed to refund a total of Rs 47,087.7 crore including interest @ 15 per cent till October 17, 2016.

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Global Laurels  

Farook Mahmood Chairman & MD, Silverline Realty

Farook Mahmood, Chairman & Managing Director of Bengaluru-based real estate brokerage firm,  Silverline Realty got the rare distinction of getting elected as the President (for 2017-18) of FIABCI, the most representative organisation of the real estate industry in the world, having special consultative status with Economic & Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations.

A graduate in real estate management, Farook had earlier held prestigious position of chairman of ICREA-International Consortium of Real Estate Associations. He is currently the vice-chairman of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), India, having 3000 members from 65 countries, representing all professions of real estate. With the election of Farook as    President- elect, FIABCI, the spotlight will turn on India that is  undergoing several landmark structural reforms like Real Estate Regulation Act (RERA).

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Home Travails  

Rajyavardhan Rathore, Union Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting

The year 2016 was marked as a year of face- off between real estate developers and home buyers, with thousands of harried home buyers left in the lurch, due to long delays in delivery of homes. Among these hordes of faceless aggrieved home buyers, was Union Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting, Rajyavardhan Rathore, who like many others, had to seek legal recourse for justice.

Rathore had booked an apartment in  Gurgaon in 2006 and paid Rs 70 lakh for it. The builder's default to deliver the project on time, made National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission this year, to direct  the builder to refund the principal amount with interest and compensation to Rathore. Later, the Supreme Court  directed the builder to hand over the flat to the minister in two days, noting that the extent of compensation to be paid by developer to Rathore, would be decided later. However, the dispute did not end even after the allotment of the flat as the minister complained to apex court that the flat was not habitable as it lacked basic facilities including parking space. Thereafter, a  fact finding committee appointed by the Supreme Court, found many deficiencies in the allotted flat. Finally, SC settled the case telling real estate company to remove deficiencies in the allotted flat while at the same time telling the minister to amicably sort out the issue with the real estate developer.

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Forbes Honours 

K.P Singh, Chairman, DLF 

The chairman of India’s largest real estate company, DLF, hogged the limelight as the biggest gainer in the 2016 Forbes India Rich list. According to the coveted list, Singh gained highest 86.4 per cent, ahead of business tycoon, Ajay Piramal (82.6 per cent). He recorded $4.8 billion in terms of per centage rise in wealth- up from $2.6 billion in 2015.

The remarkable rise in realty czar’s fortunes is attributed to 26.8 per cent jump in DLF stock since September 2015, after the company board cleared a proposal of promoters selling 40 per cent of their stake in commercial property development arm- DLF Cyber Developers, to institutional investors. Singh has moved to 22nd ranking in Forbes 2016 rich list, scaling 12 spots from 34th ranking last year. The real estate tycoon’s gain in wealth assumes significance as the top 20 billionaires in the Forbes India Rich list have seen their wealth (as a per centage of total wealth of top 100 billionaires) reduce steadily from 70 per cent in 2009 to 52 per cent in 2016.

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Scam- tainted

Nirmal Singh Bhangoo MD, Pearl Group: Scam- tainted

The year saw the Chairman & Managing Director  of Pearl Group, with interests in real estate and  media, Nirmal Singh Bhangoo  getting arrested by the CBI in connection with Rs 45, 000 crore ponzi scam case in which close to 5.5 crore investors were duped. 

The CBI found that Pearl group companies were raising investments by promising hefty returns and issuing bogus land allotment letters. 

The CBI had registered case against Bhangu and others in 2014 on the orders of Supreme Court. According to CBI, Bhangoo owns 68 offices and 553 acres in Delhi and the investigating agency has identified his properties worth Rs 5,000 crore across the country.

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Land Row 

Hema Malini Actor politician

Actor-politician, Hema Malini, landed herself in a raging controversy over allotment of land for her dance academy in Mumbai’s suburban upmarket Andheri. According to information procured by an RTI activist,  Hema was allotted a prime plot of land worth several crores for a paltry sum by Maharashtra government. Later, a PIL was filed in Mumbai High Court, seeking direction to file a case of cheating and forgery. The state government took a stand that the land allotment was in line with the old policy of charging low ready reckoner rates of February 1, 1976, but it was forced to cancel the old policy and come up with a new policy based on current rates. Hema Malini, however, maintained  that there was no question of land grab as she was yet to get possession of the land in question and that she would pay according to law, when she gets the land.

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Illicit Wealth  

Mahesh Shah Ahmedabad- based realtor

The  government’s demonetisation  drive to stamp out black money , dealt a severe blow to real estate sector, already facing slow down. The currency crackdown against black money witnessed bizarre headlines when an Ahmedabad- based realtor, Mahesh Shah disclosed unaccounted earnings of Rs 13,260 crore under the Centre’s Income Declaration Scheme (IDS).

What was really bizarre about this billionaire realtor, was that for  the past 2-3 years, he had reportedly shown his annual income as Rs 2-3 lakh. Shah, however, defaulted on payment of first installment of over Rs 1000 crore by November 30, as part of the amnesty scheme.

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Caught in litigation  

Sanjay Chandra MD , Unitech group

It was a year of court cases and sentences for the Unitech group as it faltered in handing over possessions to buyers in its different projects. In January a Delhi court had sent Unitech Ltd Chairman Ramesh Chandra, MDs Sanjay (in pic) & Ajay Chandra & Director Minoti Bahri to 14-day judicial custody in alleged cheating cases filed by two investors. And the troubles continued for the group as in July the Supreme Court ordered Unitech to refund investors' money due to the delay in the housing project in Noida. The builder however, responded by saying that it didn’t have the money to refund buyers.

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$1 Billion Sell-off Bonanza 

Niranjan & Surendra Hiranandani Hiranandani Group

For the leading real estate duo of Niranjan & Surendra Hiranandani, the year 2016 brought in an exceptional windfall, in the form of $1 billion (Rs 6,700 crore) sell-off of their jointly owned commercial assets in the upmarket Powai in Mumbai. The 4.5 msf of office and retail space monetised by Hiranandani brothers, by way of sale to Canadian private equity firm, Brookfield Asset Management, is a part of Hiranandani Business Park & Hiranandani Gardens in Powai.

Niranjan Hiranandani’s  real estate firm, Hiranandani Developers, owns 2000 acres and is constructing 3000 apartments in Mumbai suburbs, besides developing 5msf of office space in the country. He plans to deploy a part of his $500 million share from asset sale, for setting up a non-profit affordable housing company, with its operations in Mumbai & Chennai.

Surendra Hiranandani, on the other hand , plans to reinvest the money in his company — House of Hiranandani, that is engaged in the development of luxury homes.