The MMRDA report, which has come at a time when Public Interest Litigations on similar contentions are being heard in the high court, lists several glaring violations. These include breach of condition for ULC exemption (which requires a developer to construct a certain number of smaller sized flats for the low income groups.) The MMRDA report also recommends a penalty to be slapped on the developer for constructing commercial buildings as well as a premium for using Transfer of Development Rights on the land.

Under a tripartite agreement of 1986 between the MMRDA, the state government and Hiranandani, the land was given to the latter on an 80-year lease. The land was granted an exemption under the Urban Land Ceiling Act. The agreement provided that the areas of flats would be 400 sq ft and 800 sq ft. However, the report mentions, that most of the flats were amalgamated and were made in 1,800 to 4,000 sq ft areas

Niranjan Hiranandani, who has refuted the charges in a letter to the MMRDA commissioner on Wednesday, said that the state government has over the years granted him permission to construct bigger sized flats. “Around 1989, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) found that none of its flats in its Powai project were selling due to competition from our project. Therefore the MMRDA itself granted us permission to amalgamate the flats. Moreover in our project there was demand from buyers for bigger apartments,” said Hiranandani. Last year, the developer had to face raids by the Income Tax Department and CBI’s Anti-Corruption Bureau for alleged non-payment of Rs 168 crore worth Provident Fund dues. Terming the latest charges as part of a “malicious propaganda carried out by various vested interest groups to malign me and my company” Hiranandani said, “I have constructed the commercial buildings as per a state government circular which allows such constructions on 10% of the land. The MMRDA cannot be beyond the government which has given similar specific orders from time to time.”