Dhoni moves Supreme Court seeking protection of ownership rights of property in Amrapali project
New Delhi: Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni has moved the Supreme Court seeking protection of his ownership rights on an over 5,500-square feet penthouse he booked 10 year ago in a project of embattled Amrapali Group.
Dhoni filed an application in the court through his lawyer, after receiving a notice from apex court-appointed forensic auditors seeking clarification on certain aspects of the purchase.
"This application is being moved by the applicant (Dhoni) to protect his rights qua his ownership and possession of Penthouse apartment...in Amrapali Sapphire phase-1 which was agreed to be sold to him vide agreement dated August 31, 2009," Dhoni said in the application, filed through advocate Shekhar Kumar.
The apex court is scheduled to hear the Amrapali matter on April 30.
Dhoni said the apex court had on December 5 last year directed the forensic auditors to issue individual notices to home buyers who booked the flats on a paltry sum.
The former team India captain said his authorised representative has given a detailed reply to the notice sent by the forensic auditors.
Dhoni said he has paid Rs 20 lakh for the property but only some work for the penthouse has been done and he has not been given the possession.
"It is respectfully submitted here that the price paid by the applicant is certainly not a paltry amount," he said, adding that because he was associated with the Amrapali Group as their brand ambassador, he got the penthouse at a lower price.
This cannot be a ground to question the otherwise genuine agreement, he said. While the affidavit mention no market price for the property, it is estimated that it is worth over Rs 1 crore.
Dhoni said that like other home-buyers and creditors, he has also been duped by the Amrapali Group. He sought direction from the court that the allotment of the penthouse is not questioned and he be allowed to take its possession.
On April 9, the apex court had expressed annoyance over "circulation" of forensic auditors' report among lawyers on the Amrapali Group before it was submitted to the court.
The top court said it will hear from April 30 the pleas of home-buyers on whether the property titles can be given to them.
It had said it will also look into the ways the money diverted to other ventures by Amrapali can be realised and the stalled projects be completed.
The court had said that if anyone has to benefit from the Amrapali case it is the hassled home-buyers who invested their earnings but were not given the flats.
The court had taken on record the final report comprising nine volumes submitted by the two court appointed forensic auditors and directed them to finish their work by April 28.
The forensic auditors, Pawan Agrawal and Ravi Bhatia, had told the court that they have found that over Rs 3,000 crore of home buyers' money was diverted by Amrapali promoters.
They said over 100 shell companies were formed by the group to divert the money.
On February 28, the apex court had allowed the Delhi police to arrest and interrogate in custody Amrapali group CMD Anil Sharma and two directors on a complaint that home-buyers of their various housing projects were cheated and duped of their funds.
The top court, which is seized of several pleas of home-buyers seeking possession of around 42,000 flats booked in projects of the Amrapali group, also ordered attachment of personal properties of the CMD and directors -- Shiv Priya and Ajay Kumar.
The trio, under detention of the Uttar Pradesh police and kept in a hotel at Noida since October 9 last year by the apex court for not complying with its orders, was in for a shock when the court ordered the arrest on a plea by Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police saying that it wanted to quiz them in a separate cheating case.
The court had also appointed a valuer to ascertain the exact value of 5,229 unsold flats including those booked by Amrapali for just Rs 1, Rs 11 and Rs 12 and asked the valuer to submit its report.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
