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Mukesh Ambani's Antilia Commercial Pvt Ltd wants the Waqf Board to hear its version before the custodian of Muslim religious property takes control of a piece of land at Mumbai's Altamount Road, where the industrialist is building his 27-storey dream mansion.
In its reply to the Waqf Board notice, which sought restoration of the 4,532 sq mt property under section 52 of the Waqf Act as it was acquired illegally, Antilia has requested that its version be heard before any decision is taken on the issue, official sources said in Mumbai on Wednesday.
The reply was received on Tuesday by the Waqf Board, which had issued the notice on July five, informed sources told PTI.
The notice had given Antilia seven days to reply on why the Altamount Road plot should not be restored to the Waqf Board as the deal was deemed illegal by the state government.
The state government had on July 3, dashed off a letter to the Waqf Board, drawing its attention to the findings of an inquiry committee which had found 'truth in charges that the Altamount plot deal was illegal.'
The government had directed the Waqf Board to proceed 'as per section 52 of the Waqf Act against Antilia,' the sources said.
Section 52 pertains to acquiring Waqf property in contravention of provisions of section 51 of the Act, the sources said.
After the Waqf land deal issue was raised in the ongoing Monsoon Session of the state legislature, Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh had announced that a judicial commission would probe all Waqf land deals in the state.
Antilia Commercial, in its reply, has sought to 'elaborately' explain how the land deal was legal, the source said. The reply, sent through Antilia's Mumbai-based legal counsel, cites the sequence of the Altamount land deal.
"The reply speaks about the amount of money paid to the Currimbhoy Orphanage Trust from whom the land was acquired in 2002. It also refers to the Rs 16 lakh (Rs 1.6 million) Waqf fund received by the Board from the Trust," the source said. -- PTI
Scaffoldings at the under-construction mansion of Reliance Industries chief Mukesh Ambani in the high-profile Malabar Hill area of Mumbai.
Photograph: Pal Pillai/AFP/Getty Images