Indian Property News on 'August, 2009'

Realty Estate Developers Showing Interest in Land Acquisition

Following a slew of new launches in the affordable housing segment in the past few months, real estate developers in the country are once again showing interest in land acquisition. They are now also expecting “some price escalations” for residential properties, with easier liquidity and overall positive market environment in the second half of the year. “We believe developers’ appetite for land has increased, given easier financing conditions and availability of prime land parcels (which many developers do not have) at reasonable rates. Increase in both off-takes and unit prices has improved developers’ confidence to purchase new land, in our view,” J P Morgan analyst Saurabh Kumar said in a note to clients.

In recent deals, Indiabulls Real Estate won the four-acre Mantralaya modernisation project in Mumbai with a bid of Rs 1,376 crore. DLF Ltd, the country’s largest realtor, won a 350-acre plot in Gurgaon for about Rs 1,750 crore after two other bidders — Unitech and Bharti — were disqualified on technical grounds. DLF, however, still wants the government to ease policies to ramp up deals. “The overall demand is certainly firming up. All the developers have reduced property prices in the past so I don’t think any price hike can be expected in the near future,” DLF’s group executive director Rajeev Talwar told DNA. However, if demand continues to build up and supply gets restrained, the situation may lead to prices moving northwards. I think the government should ease the policies on giving clearances faster as that creates unnecessary delay in executing the projects,” he said.

Realty analysts and consultants are skeptical about the plan due to developers’ high debt. “That (price revival) is something skeptical to talk about right now. Most developers have raised money through capital markets by either a qualified institutional placement of shares or they are lining up an initial public offering. Companies which are heavy with debt or those who have reduced debt by raising capital should not look at purchasing land outright. However, if they have a fair debt position they can look at it,” Ambar Maheshwari, director-investment advisory at DTZ, told DNA. Omaxe chairman and managing director Rohtas Goel is optimistic of a price hike early next calender. “We have seen projects being launched at rock bottom prices off-late. The same projects are selling at a premium in the re-sale market, so you can expect developers to launch new projects at a higher price, we would also be looking at acquiring some key land plots,” he said.

Nitin Idnani, research analyst with Enam Securities, said, “Developers are still ready to buy land which can be monetised and [as for] those parcels located in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, developers still want to sell them off as it would be difficult to get returns on that land bank.” New Delhi-based developer Anant Raj Industries is also looking to buy distressed land from developers reeling under high debt and has started acquiring land in Maneswar and Bhagwandas. The company has allocated Rs 450 crore for land, on which it plans to build affordable homes. “We are negotiating for many land parcels, which we can get at discounted rates in the current market,” Amit Sarin, director, Anant Raj said.

Kolkata Real Estate Experts Suggest Sellers to Wait for Another six Months

While everybody is speaking about how good an opportunity it is to put in your money in real estate now, investors who intending to sell could do well waiting for about six more months to get some added advantage, say experts. “It depends on at what level they had entered. In another three to six months the market will be stable and input costs are anticipated to rise after that. Since there are no major projects that have been announced, there will be strain on supply. People should wait for at least six months before starting to sell,” said Pradeep Sureka, managing director of Bengal Park Chambers Housing Development Ltd. He added that ideally a twoyear wait would bring in maximum returns.

Debjani Mukherjee Sarkar, general manager — marketing of Bengal NRI and Varun Kathotia, director — marketing of Fort Group agreed. “In the past two months, the trend has shown that the market is picking up. The Bengal NRI, however, believes that people should wait for around six months to get an appreciation of about 10 to 15 per cent,” she said. “Land prices have not changed much and unless one can strike a very good deal, it is better to wait another four months before one sells a property,” Kathotia said. Some said in a couple of years, there would be major rise in property prices. “Those who had invested between 2005 and 2007, early 2008 had been the best time to sell off. At the moment, the market is slightly down and it is the right time to buy rather than sell. By 2011, there will be another 20 to 30 per cent jump in the market and that will be the ideal time to sell,” said Mayank Saksena, associate director of Joneslang Lasalle Meghraj.

“Two years from now, there will be a more than 30 per cent rise in prices,” said Sumeet Dabriwala, managing director of United Credit Belani Group. He added that people should wait for six months to one year because the condition at present was just the beginning of an uptrend. Many divided investors into different categories. “Selling will depend on when the person had taken possession of the property. If he is an old investor, this time is good enough to fetch him a profit and if he has been a recent investor, it will be better for him to wait for some time as the market has stabled and from here, it will only improve. In another year, the market will improve at least 10 per cent,” said Rahul Todi, managing director of Shrachi.

Rajesh Somani of Somani Realtors classified investors according to the amount of money they had spent. “People who had put in their money in properties of over Rs 40 lakh can sell them off as market growth in that segment is very slow but for investors under Rs 30 lakh, it will be advisable to wait for another six months, because the market is showing a positive trend,” he said. “The market has stabilised. People who had bought a correctly priced property will get better returns than bank interest, but those who purchased at exorbitant prices, expecting to make a fortune, will suffer a loss. Sellers who can afford to wait for another six months will get better return. The slowdown has put a check on speculative buying,” said Biswadeep Gupta, general manager of Eden City Group.

Sushil Mohta, managing director of Merlin Group, said two factors crucial to selling were whether the deal was mutually beneficial to both the seller and the buyer and whether it satisfied the consumer’s requirements. As long as these conditions were fulfilled, selling could take place. “Now, when the market sentiment has changed and developers have become more approachable, consumers are finding it easier to visit them and discuss in details their buying or selling decisions. Moreover, in such conditions, developers extend extra cooperation and added incentives to consumers, making deals more lucrative,” he said.

A few experts do not anticipate much of a rise in the near future. “Going by my interest, they should be buying, but realistically speaking, all buying and selling should be held for another three months,” said Kumar Shankar Bagchi, managing director of Bengal Peerless. Asked whether there will be a similar boom in two years, he said, “There will be, but prices will not soar to the level at which they were in the near past, before the financial crash. What happened was a catastrophe, caused by individuals who kept investing endlessly. They have learnt a lesson and I am sure that kind of situation will not rise again in my lifetime.” Harshvardhan Neotia, chairman and managing director of Ambuja Realty said he didn’t see any significant appreciation in the short run. “If one needs the money, one will have to sell anyway, but if one has the retaining capacity, one should wait for another couple of years before any considerable rise in property price,” he said.

“I believe that the decision should be based on the necessity to raise capital. I do not see any sharp increase in the value of real estate in the immediate future. Then again prices of real estate are dependent on location of the property and it is difficult to make a general statement,” said Santosh Rungta, president of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI).

Real Estate Sector Recovering Worldwide

There are strong new reports that the global real estate market is hitting the bottom and some impressive positive news is coming from real estate markets around the world. In the U.S., the real estate market has yet to hit the bottom, but at least it is very close. There are 2 factors that would determine recovering the real estate market. One is when job losses stop and new jobs are created and secondly when the real estate prices are realistic reflections of what people can afford to buy. The news that the real estate market is recovering based on recent sales doesn’t really reflect real recovery. What is happening is that people are buying houses at bargain prices. The value of sales is up and this is a good sign but still the real estate market would probably start recovering by next spring.

Around the world there is positive news in India where there is a huge demand of the population for real estate that is the main factor for the real estate boom–and also in the Middle East where the population growth in 10-15 years is estimated to triple. The European real estate market mirrors what is happening in the U.S. There are some signs of improvement in Africa and Latin America but not as strong as in Canada, India and China. The Canadian Real Estate Association reported that realtors sold 50,270 units sold via the multiple listing service last month. That’s an 18.2 per cent jump from a year ago. It also marked the first time sales had topped 50,000 in July. Sales of existing single-family homes jumped 55 percent in the 2009 second quarter compared to the 2009 first quarter. Realtors sold 18,141 homes in the second quarter.

In China the strength of the property sector has been another big surprise. Property sales were up 53% in the first six months from a year earlier, according to a survey commissioned by the statistics bureau and published in the China Information News, while nationwide prices averaged across 70 cities climbed year on year in June. This masks the fact that in second and third cities prices have been strengthening much more. Property normally accounts for about 25% of fixed asset investment in China and is a key form of wealth holding for most Chinese. Optimism about housing prices will translate into greater consumer confidence.

Things Looking Good for Indian Retail Sector

FDI in retail must be allowed, insists Anshuman Magazine, CMD of CB Richard Ellis South Asia Pvt Ltd. “India’s retail trade is around $ 180 billion, which is almost 10 per cent of the GDP, employing more then 21 million persons. Policies should be more transparent and smooth, in order to attract foreign investors,” he justifies. “Like any other person who invests money, we need to understand that foreign investors will also expect returns. Perhaps the challenge lies in reassuring these investors,” he wonders aloud.

According to Dubai-based real estate consultant, Rajesh Bijlani, the news of retail chain IKEA putting its India entry plans on hold, indicates the prevalent scenario. “There is something in India’s policies and implementation that is keeping such major brands from entering right now, despite the fact that the economic indices are attractive to MNC brands,” he feels. “Many retail brands that have outlets in the UAE have shown interest in setting up operations in India, but little is actually working out in the near future, as compared to the potential. I guess we need to work out red-tapism and other issues that seem to be delaying the entry of these retail players at present,” he adds.

FDI is not allowed in multi-brand retail, only in single-branded stores, points out Bappaditya Basu, vice-president (retail), Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj. “Foreign, single brand stores can open with an Indian partner and hold a maximum of 51 per cent stake, according to FDI norms. In the past, this was not allowed, which meant that only the franchisee route was available and it did not suit many of these brands,” he explains. Among the global retailers seeking to enter the Indian retail arena are Hamleys, Diesel, et al, reveals Basu. “Leading international brands like Burberry, Smallsmith, Kenzo, Bottega Veneta, Canali and Just Cavali were already present on a limited scale and have now changed partners, to open up more stores in India. There are also some international coffee chains eyeing India and scouting for partners,” he adds.

Ashok Kumar, principal and managing director, CresaPartners India mentions how the Emke Group, which operates the biggest hypermarket chain in the Middle East under the LuLu and Al Falah brands, is entering the Indian market by developing the biggest shopping mall in Kochi, in Kerala. “Crocs India Retail Ltd, the lifestyle footwear brand, will launch eight to 10 more EBOs in India. Similarly, Manchester United Food & Beverage Asia, with a mandate to set up casual dining outlets tapping into the popularity of the multi-billion dollar club, has done a recce of select Indian cities in recent months and followed it up by talking to potential investors. Leonidas, a Belgian chocolate producer and seller, has entered the Indian market by establishing its retail operations in India. It claims to be the only chocolate brand having its own exclusive store,” he adds. Similarly, New Delhi-based Grand Slam, one of the market leaders in high end fitness equipment, is planning to set up 30 more franchisee stores in tier-II and tier-III cities, by January 2010, adds Kumar. “Obviously, things are looking up and the Indian scenario seems receptive to FDI in retail,” he adds.

Rajnikant Ajmera, former president of CREDAI explains that the retail segment in India faces a simple challenge: global trends do not fit-in entirely, given that the end customer has a different buying pattern and motivators to loyalty, with regards to a brand or a location. “If you look at Mumbai’s retail story, initial projects faced all sorts of challenges. Some quietly shut down, were taken over or re-did their business plans. Issues pertaining to footfalls, the right size and mix of anchor tenants are still being learnt,” says Ajmera. However, global brands will definitely want to enter the vast Indian market, he adds. Kumar points out that the government has proposed setting up a retail regulatory authority, which will have jurisdiction over the organised retail sector, including single-brand stores and the wholesale cash-and-carry trade.

Amidst talk of a recovery from the global economic recession and the impact on real estate in India, Atul Modak, head of Kohinoor City Project says, “Global financial hiccups are a fact of life. They impact sentiment but will not stop economic growth in India. There is a demand-supply gap when it comes to quality commercial space. Prominent locations have and will always see terrific growth in residential space and this, in turn, will trigger the retail and commercial realty boom in any area,” he says.

Indian REITs Losing Overseas Opportunities

In a scenario where real estate is becoming out of reach for small investors, to invest and reap profits, real estate investment trusts (REITs) are a good way for the investor class to invest in the sector. It also benefits developers, as more funds are pumped into real estate. REITs/REMFs offer an innovative option for investors to buy and trade shares in the real estate sector and collect dividends from capital appreciation and rental incomes, explains Atul Modak, head, Kohinoor City Project.

REITs are generally classified into three broad categories – equity REITs, mortgage REITs and hybrid REITs. “The best benefit of REITs is fast and easy liquidation of investments in the real estate market, unlike the traditional way of disposing real estate,” he explains. However, it is important to have proper regulation and utilisation of these funds and total transparency in the whole process. For REITs to be a success and contribute to the growth of the economy, initial tax sops to the investors and REITs will be helpful, he feels.

REITs in the Indian scenario, are yet to take off, says Ashok Kumar, principal and managing director, CresaPartners India. “Certainly, we are losing out on such opportunities to overseas REITs, as it does not seem to be a priority for the government,” he regrets. The real estate sector in India is still complex and the regulators have to fix a lot of policies and valuation issues, in advance, for REITs to become functional, he adds. “If one considers the union budget 2009-10, there was no mention about FDI in real estate or REITs and REMFs. However, we hope that the FM will announce some relief for the sector, post the budget,” adds Kumar.

Realtor Bharat Mailk points to a paper, ‘Indian REITs: Are We Prepared’, by the ASSOCHAM and CRISIL and says that REITs in India would have the potential to hold at least five per cent share of the total global real estate market, by 2010. The size of this global market would touch US $ 1,400 billion, according to the paper. “According to the paper, by 2010, REITs alone would hold a market size of US $ 70 billion of the total real estate market, as the concept is gaining ground in countries like India and other developing nations,” he says, laying out the statistics. In the Indian context, REITs can help provide an exit route for developers, to revolve funds more efficiently. It will also provide opportunities to retail investors to participate in the real estate sector and provide asset diversification to corporate investors, besides building a vibrant secondary real estate market, adds Malik.

REMFs are the Indian version of the international REITs, adapted to the Indian mutual funds platform, explains Shobhit Agarwal, joint MD (capital markets), Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj. “In the current context, while everybody is now working on entry and creating assets, the important question of who will buy these assets to provide an exit to the developers / investors needs to be addressed,” he points out. The leveraging allowed in the case of Indian REITs is the lowest (at 20 per cent of the value), compared to 35 per cent in the case of Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan and 200 per cent in the case of Korea. This could result in a lower yield and because it is not really leveraged, the risk taken is also more,” he cautions.

Mihir Dhruva, CEO of Siddharth Group is of the opinion that REITs should be more preferred by the ‘low-risk, low-return’ investor segment. “Sentiments, which contributed significantly to the depressed market in FY 08-09 are now reversing,” says Dhruva. “This has been reflected in reports coming from different cities, showing revival of real estate transactions and REITs should have a positive response as a result,” he concludes.

ITDC plans to make Private Hotels, Realtors as Partners

Hotel-cum-tourism PSU, Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) plans to make private hotel companies and real estate players its franchisee partners. It launched the Ashok Alliance Scheme on Thursday, under which member hotels will be able to use the Ashok brand and benefit from the operational management expertise, marketing inputs and other resources of the ITDC Group. ITDC, in turn, would get 3% of the gross room revenues earned by these hotels.

The company has roped in two developers in Surat and Chandigarh, who will get to use the Ashok brand for properties developed by them. This will take the total number of hotels under the Ashok brand to 18. “We are in talks with a number of other real estate players and hoteliers to bring more hotels under the Ashok Alliance scheme,” ITDC vice-president Kuldip Verma said.

He said ITDC would add 5-6 more hotels at various locations through this alliance — three in West Bengal and one each in Manesar, Coorg and Malaut, Punjab. In the long run, it wants to increase the hotel count to 33 hotels.

In the past three years, ITDC has invested Rs 146 crore in refurbishing Ashok Hotel, Samrat Hotel and Janpath Hotel for the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. The Organising Committee Commonwealth Games (OCCG) 2010 has declared these three hotels as ‘Games Family Hotels’ which have a total room inventory of 680 rooms. It is revamping its hotels at other destinations too.

ITDC had 34 hotels, of which 18 hotels were sold to private partners under the government’s disinvestment programme. The PSU is now left with 16 hotels, which it now plans to expand through the scheme.

India widens foreign VC funds’ investment options

Indian regulators have opened the doors to foreign venture capital funds (FVCFs) beyond the select investment options they were being offered in recent times.

The decision, reflected in some of the communications between the Reserve Bank India and custodian banks of VC funds, could not only make life easier for foreign funds and widen the scope for their risk capital, but also boost foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country.

In the past one year, FVCFs, which were allowed to come in, were specifically told to stick to activities such as infrastructure, bio-technology, nano-technology, biofuel, IT-related activities for hardware and software development and a few other areas outlined by the government in the list of 10 sectors identified for tax benefits to VCs.

Recently, RBI, while giving the green light to some of the FVCFs, has said “if the FVC investor intends to make any private equity investments, then it may have to avail the FDI route”. This means that barring a few sensitive sectors, an FVCF registered in India is free to invest in almost any business in the country. For buying into firms which are outside the 10 sectors, the fund will have to either approach the Foreign Investment Promotion Board for FDIs where the board approval is required, or invest directly in areas where FDI is permitted under the automatic route.

Responding to the development, Vikram Shroff of the law firm Nishith Desai Associates said, “The regulator’s intention seems to be to allow FVC entities to invest beyond what is permissible under the Sebi FVC regulations, albeit under the FDI route.” Shroff, who advises several FVCFs, said, “Upon RBI clarifying, offshore venture capital and private equity funds may no longer need to set up separate entities for pursuing FDI in India.”

According to private equity circles, FVCFs have interest in businesses like BPOs, telecom, media and entertainment, among other segments. RBI’s latest stand, however, does not pave the way for FVCF investment in the real estate space — something the central bank forbids.

Fearing a real estate bubble, RBI generally insists on an undertaking from FVCFs that they will not invest in property firms. This, according to private equity circles, is unlikely to change. But on a broader plane, this is a welcome move by RBI and will encourage foreign investments, said Punit Shah, executive director of PricewaterhouseCoopers. “Of course, FVCs enjoy certain regulatory benefits under Sebi and Fema regulations, such as exit and entry pricing and lock-in relaxations. These will not be available for its investments under FDI route, but RBI has certainly made things convenient for the foreign funds.”

Interestingly, the RBI letter is also a rare instance when a local regulator makes a mention of ‘private equity’ — a widely-used generic term for which there is no regulatory definition in India. “It needs to be understood that venture capital and private equity are largely similar activities — only the stage differs. Both provide risk capital. While VCs fund early stage, PEs focus on medium to late stage companies. In several cases, the same fund undertakes both investment activities,” said Shroff.

Bandra-Worli Sea Link Expected to Boost Real Estate Prices by 10-15 per cent in Surrounding Areas

It’s a classic case of infrastructural development boosting real estate prices.The Bandra-Worli Sea Link seems to be doing more than just easing the traffic flow from north and south Mumbai. Experts in the country’s financial capital say that there could be an increase of 10-15 per cent in property rates in surrounding areas. “The Bandra-Worli Sea Link will not only provide relief from the agonising traffic, but will also trigger a major crowd influx, which will affect real estate prices. South Mumbai will have high demand .There are indications of a 10-15 per cent hike in property prices and this may effect connecting areas. Builders who are already selling flats in the area would go for a price correction immediately, says Rajesh Vardhan, managing director, Vardh­aman Group, a Mumbai-based real estate development company. In the same breath, he says it is time for a Nariman Point-Worli sea link as well.

Bandra-Worli Sea Link is a Maharashtra state road development corporation project, constr­ucted by HCC, India’s largest engineering contracting company. The road hangs in between cable-stayed bridges on the two ends namely, the Bandra and Worli Cable-stayed bridges of 500 and 150-metre spans, respectively – with the highest towers soaring to a height of 126 metres, equivalent to the height of a 43-storeyed building. The sea link was opened for general public on June 29. Not everyone, however, shares the same optimism. Shreegopal Maheshwari, broker attached to Mumbai-based Maheshwari & Maheshwari, feels that it is too early to see an impact on property prices. “It is just over a month since the link was inaugurated. We may see the real impact in six months.

Worli Sea face has, however, seen a drop of 10 per cent property prices due to increased traffic in the area,” he said. While the office properties in Mumbai generally continued to fall. “Mumbai continued to remain volatile in terms of rental values. Bandra–Kurla Complex (BKC) corrected by another 20 per cent over the previous quarter to settle at Rs 225 per sq ft/month. The location has also witnessed over 40 per cent correction over June, 2008. This has triggered increased interest in the location from corporate occupiers and approximately 1.41 million sq.ft was leased within this location. With the growing demand for this location, the rentals are expected to remain stable in short to medium term,” said a recent report by Cush­man & Wakefield.

Realty Bosses Took Huge Salary Hike amid Slowdown Blues

India Inc was on a savage cost cutting drive in the latter half of 2008-09. Salary cuts and job losses became the order of the day. However, the big bosses of real estate companies of at least 4 major real estate companies such as Unitech, HDIL, Anant Raj Industries and Ackruti City took home nearly 2-10 times hike in remuneration compared to a year ago. An analysis of the annual reports of these companies shows that the salary hikes were greater in that fiscal when their businesses were caught due to economic slowdown. Wadhawans of Mumbai-centric Housing Housing Development & Infrastructure Limited (HDIL) are a good example.

Between Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan (executive chairman) and Sarang Wadhawan (managing director), HDIL paid them Rs 18 crore in salary and perks in the financial year 2008-09, 10 times more than Rs 1.72 crore a fiscal back in 2007-08. During the same period, consolidated total income of HDIL sank 27% to Rs 1,782 crore and consolidated profits after tax (before minority interests) took a harder 52% knock to Rs 677 crore. The stock price of HDIL fell over 80% to Rs 82 at March 09 end from Rs 500 levels in March 08.

In the case of Unitech – Ramesh Chandra (chairman), Sanjay Chandra and Ajay Chandra (both managing directors) received Rs 5.36 crore as cumulative remuneration in 08-09 nearly 60% more than the Rs 3.44 crore earned in 07-08 . This bountiful hike came at a time even as Unitech’s consolidated total income fell by 23% to Rs 3316 crore and profits after tax plunged 28% to Rs 1,197 crore. 57-year old Anil Sarin, copromoter and managing director of Anant Raj Industries , took home around Rs 1.28 crore in gross remuneration in fiscal 08-09 as against just Rs 37 lakh in 07-08 . Gross remuneration comprises salary, house rent allowance and company’s contribution to provident fund.

This represents more than 200% hike in remuneration – in a year when consolidated total income of Anant Raj dropped by 49% to Rs 322 crore and PAT dived by 53% to Rs 207 crore. The stock also fell from Rs 230 levels in March 2008 to Rs 40 by March 2009. “There are many issues in the real estate space. Corporate governance and the business model being two important ones. We do not like real estate much because we think that it’s very difficult to create value for the shareholders because most of them are capital guzzlers,” Sukumar Rajah, CIO of Franklin Equity (India), said.

Promoters Hemant Shah and Vyomesh Shah of Ackruti City took 40% hike in remuneration as executive chairman and MD respectively in fiscal 08-09. The older and 56-year old Hemant Shah received Rs 1.86 crore (Rs 1.30 crore in 07-08) while 49-year old Vyomesh Shah accepted Rs 1.65 crore (Rs 1.19 crore in 07-08 ). Ackruti’s total consolidated income fell just 4% to Rs 454.78 crore in 08-09 and profits after tax came down 11% to Rs 265 crore in 08-09 .

Supreme Court Blames Influential People for Illegal Real Estate Construction

The Supreme Court today came down heavily on economically affluent people, bureaucrary and civic body officials for mushrooming illegal real estate construction in the country and ruled file notings by ministers or officials do not have any legal validity. “Economically affluent people and those having support of the political and executive apparatus of the state have constructed buildings, commercial complexes, multiplexes, malls etc. in blatant violation of the municipal and town planning laws, master plans, zonal development plans and even sanctioned building plans”, said a bench of Justices B N Aggarwal and G S Singhvi in a judgement.

“In most of the cases of illegal or unauthorized constructions, the officers of the municipal and other regulatory bodies turn blind eye either due to the influence of higher functionaries of the State or other extraneous reasons, the bench observed.”In most of the cases of illegal or unauthorized constructions, the officers of the municipal and other regulatory bodies turn a blind eye either due to the influence of higher functionaries of the state or other extraneous reasons, it said.

The apex court also said file notings ministers or officials do not have any legal validity. Its ruling came while dismissing an appeal filed by Sathish Khosla, President of Shanti Sports Club of India which claimed to run a cricket academy at a village in Delhi. One of the pleas of the club was that its illegally constructed sports club should not be demolished as the then Minister for Urban Development in 1999 had noted in his file that the construction be regularised.