Congress Demands Cancellation of RBI's South Mumbai Plot Deal, Threatens Legal Action

The Congress party has demanded that the Maharashtra Government cancel the sale of a 4.1-acre plot at Nariman Point to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The party has threatened legal action if the deal is not revoked, according to news agency PTI.

Calling the decision 'arbitrary' and 'fraudulent,' Congress senior spokesperson Sachin Sawant stated that the land deal also amounts to 'cheating' political parties and reneging on past assurances. The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) executed a sale deed on September 5 for the transfer of a 16,842-sqmt plot at Nariman Point to the RBI for Rs 3,471.82 crore. This amount was intended to fund the Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ Metro-3 corridor.

The Maharashtra Government had allocated the land to MMRC to help raise Rs 1,000 crore from real estate sources, as mandated by the Centre for Metro-3 capital works. However, Sawant claimed that the market value of the land is around Rs 5,200 crore, suggesting a loss of nearly Rs 1,800 crore to the state exchequer.

Sawant further stated that the then government and Metro authorities had assured political parties that new office premises would be constructed at the same location once the project was completed. However, without any consultation, the land has now been sold to the RBI. 'This deal is a show of arrogance, arbitrary, and fraudulent. It must be scrapped, and the Congress party must be allotted its office at the same Nariman Point location, failing which we will approach the court,' he added.

Citing a government order from October 21, 2015, and a letter issued by then Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in December 2016, which assured temporary relocation, Sawant accused the state and MMRC of reneging on their promise. 'Even the RBI has been misled, as the corporation did not inform it about the earlier assurances,' he alleged.

Maharashtra Congress Vice-President Ganesh Patil confirmed that the party has written to the government and MMRC, warning of legal action if the assurance is not honoured.

Two phases of the 33-km Metro-3 'Aqua Line' (Aarey Colony JVLR-BKC and BKC-Acharya Atre Chowk) are already operational, and the final phase, between Acharya Atre Chowk in Worli and Cuffe Parade in south Mumbai, is expected to be completed soon.