NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to order a status quo on Dharavi redevelopment project in Mumbai. A bench of Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar sought responses from the Maharashtra government and Adani Properties Pvt Ltd, which was awarded the tender for the project, on a petition challenging a December 20, 2024 verdict of the Bombay High Court.
The high court had cleared the decks for redevelopment of the slums in Dharavi and upheld the tender awarded to the Adani Group for the project, ruling there was no “arbitrariness, unreasonableness or perversity” in the decision.
The high court in the process dismissed the plea of UAE-based Seclink Technologies Corporation challenging the state government’s decision to award the mega redevelopment project to Adani Properties Pvt Ltd, which had made a Rs 5,069-crore offer.
Seclink Technologies Corporation emerged as the highest bidder for the project first in 2018 with its Rs 7,200-crore offer, but the tender was later scrapped by the government.
The Adani Group had emerged as the highest bidder for the 259-hectare Dharavi redevelopment project in the heart of Mumbai and bagged it with its Rs 5,069-crore offer in the 2022.
The corporation moved against the high court decision.
While issuing notice on its plea, the bench directed Adani Properties Pvt Ltd to make payments for the project through a single bank account.
After the bench issued notice on the plea, senior advocate C Aryama Sundaram appearing for Seclink Technologies Corporation urged the court to order a status quo.
The CJI, however, said, “No.”
Sundaram informed the bench that the petitioner company offered Rs 7,200 crore in the first tender.
“I will increase my offer of Rs 7,200 crore by 20 per cent,” he told the bench, adding that the figure comes to Rs 8,640 crore.
“What about additional obligations?” asked solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state.
When the bench asked Sundaram, if it was willing to increase the offer “with the same obligations as put on the highest bidder”, Sundaram said “yes”.
The bench noted Sundaram’s submission on the proposed commitment and said, “The petitioner will file an affidavit to the said effect before this court.”
The matter would come in the week of May 25.
The bench, however, clarified no special equities would be claimed by either sides.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Adani Properties Pvt Ltd, said the project work had already commenced.
“I have carried out constructions. I have deposited funds. About 2,000 people are employed,” he said.
Mehta said some railway quarters were demolished aside from new constructions taking place.
While dismissing Seclink Technologies Corporation’s plea, the high court had also rejected its contention that the tender was “tailor made” to suit a particular firm of the private conglomerate, noting three bidders had participated in the process.
The government had cancelled the 2018 tender and issued a fresh one in 2022 with additional conditions.
The corporation first challenged the cancellation of the 2018 tender and subsequently the 2022 award of tender to the Adani Group.
The state government had claimed in the high court that the tender was awarded in a transparent manner without any undue favour to the highest bidder.
The government said the 2018 tender was cancelled and a fresh one was issued four years later owing to several factors like the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war which affected the financial and economic state of affairs.
The first tender for the mega redevelopment project was issued in November 2018.
In March 2019, the bids were opened and it was found that Seclink Technologies Corporation was the highest bidder.
Dharavi, one of the world’s densest urban sprawls, is a slum colony having a mix of residential and small industrial units.
