Jaipur:
The sale and purchase of two heritage havelis near Jaipur's famous Amer Fort have opened a pandora's box for Lalit Modi.
A probe by the Gehlot government has revealed how Modi used his proximity to Vasundhara Raje to illegally acquire them. (Read: Focus on Modi's land deals)
Though the report is yet to be made public, NDTV has learnt that tenants in the havelis were first evicted in the name of conservation and then were sold to a company in which Lalit Modi and his wife were directors.
Settlement records however show that the havelis were actually government property.
"I have got the report and I'm studying it. I am yet to examine it in detail as I was busy in a cabinet meeting," said Rajasthan Art and Heritage Minister Bina Kak.
In fact families living in these havelis for generations have complained that the Raje government forced them to vacate their homes in the name of conservation and that the state archaelogical department even sent notices to haveli owners asking them to vacate. The pressure tactic allowed Modi to buy the havelis through a company called Heritage Constructions and then Ananda Heritage hotels.
"We never wanted to sell our havelis; who would want to sell his home? But the government piled on a lot of pressure on us saying that you have to vacate as these are heritage properties," said Bharat Singh, the owner of Amer haveli.
Under the Land Registration Act, the registrar needs to verify if any land being registered is actually owned by the government. But in this case, officials flouted that rule.
Clearly, while Modi is already on a sticky wicket in the IPL row, his closeness to Vasundhara Raje and involvement in alleged land scams could now spell more trouble for the IPL Commissioner.
A probe by the Gehlot government has revealed how Modi used his proximity to Vasundhara Raje to illegally acquire them. (Read: Focus on Modi's land deals)
Though the report is yet to be made public, NDTV has learnt that tenants in the havelis were first evicted in the name of conservation and then were sold to a company in which Lalit Modi and his wife were directors.
Settlement records however show that the havelis were actually government property.
"I have got the report and I'm studying it. I am yet to examine it in detail as I was busy in a cabinet meeting," said Rajasthan Art and Heritage Minister Bina Kak.
In fact families living in these havelis for generations have complained that the Raje government forced them to vacate their homes in the name of conservation and that the state archaelogical department even sent notices to haveli owners asking them to vacate. The pressure tactic allowed Modi to buy the havelis through a company called Heritage Constructions and then Ananda Heritage hotels.
"We never wanted to sell our havelis; who would want to sell his home? But the government piled on a lot of pressure on us saying that you have to vacate as these are heritage properties," said Bharat Singh, the owner of Amer haveli.
Under the Land Registration Act, the registrar needs to verify if any land being registered is actually owned by the government. But in this case, officials flouted that rule.
Clearly, while Modi is already on a sticky wicket in the IPL row, his closeness to Vasundhara Raje and involvement in alleged land scams could now spell more trouble for the IPL Commissioner.
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