In 70 days, at Rs 75 lakh: The curious case of a 9-acre plot sold to former Khattar aide’s family

Within 70 days of its inception, a new transport company purchased nine acres of land, got the land use category changed, and transferred the plot to the family of a key officer in the Haryana chief minister’s office at a throwaway price of Rs 75 lakh, suggest documents seen by Newslaundry.

The sale and transfer took place in Khalikpur village of Badli tehsil in Jhajjar district when Neeraj Daftuar served as a principal officer on special duty in Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s office. Appointed in 2016, he is now in Delhi after he resigned from his post in October last year.

Speaking to Newslaundry, Daftuar denied that the land was transferred for a sum of Rs 75 lakh. He said that his family paid an amount of Rs 4 crore but refused to share evidence to support the claim.

The “agricultural” land in question was initially part of the Model Economic Township Limited – a Greenfield smart city project run by a Reliance Industries Limited subsidiary. It was purchased for Rs 2.73 crore by ANA Real Logistics on March 24 last year – just one month after the company was floated with an aim to work on transport and logistics. 

The company applied for change of land use to the “non-agricultural” category to build a warehouse on April 15, and the Haryana Directorate of Town and Country Planning approved the application on May 4.

But just two days before the application was approved, ANA Real Logistics relinquished the company and its assets, including the land, to OSD Daftuar’s wife Anupam Daftuar and son Aditya Daftuar for Rs 75 lakh, claiming that the firm did not have the funds to carry on with business.

The price of the land, however, is much higher in the area. Sources told Newslaundry it had ranged from Rs 2 crore to 5 crore per acre last year and continues to rise.

Surinder Singh Malik, a real estate trader in Jhajjar who runs LKVS Malik Real Estate Pvt Ltd, said, “The cost of an acre of land in Khalikpur area is around 2 crore rupees. Our land prices have skyrocketed since the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway came into the area. Khalikpur was already next to the Reliance Special Economic Zone, so land prices here are very high.”

A sales executive linked to the Reliance MET said land was purchased for the project from farmers. The executive confirmed that the land purchased by ANA Real Logistics was part of the MET “but it’s hard to believe that they got 9 acres of land just for Rs 2.73 crores. This seems to be agricultural land which was the purchase property of MET.”

“Even the rate for agricultural land in the remotest area here is not less than Rs 2 crore. The agricultural land near the highway is not less than Rs 5 or 6 crore per acre. A change of land use is required only for agricultural land but not for licensed land.”

The company

ANA Real Logistics was set up by Siddharth Lamba and Ashish Chandna, who were partners and directors in the Limited Liability Partnership firm. The registered address of the company was Chandna’s residence.

But both of them are employees of Gurgaon-based property management firm AVEC Group, which also has offices in Dubai and Singapore. While Lamba is the vice president of advisory and transactions, Chandna works as the residential sales manager.

Reached for comment, Lamba said, “I don’t know anything about this sir. I have no idea. Thank you so much.” He disconnected the call and could not be reached again.

Chandna could not be reached for comment. This report will be updated if he responds to our queries.

Lamba’s sister Vasudha Dhingra is among three AVEC Group directors, which also include her husband Vaibhav Dhingra and mother-in-law Dayavanti Dhinga.

When asked for comment, Vasudha said she is “not interested” in talking about this “at all”.

The family

After school in Jharkhand’s Chaibasa and a masters degree in history from Delhi University, Neeraj Daftuar began his career with Kolkata-based firm Audio Visual Arts. Before being appointed as OSD, he had worked as a director in several companies with his wife and son.

Anupam and Aditya are directors in seven companies, including Incor Business Solutions Pvt Ltd, Geospatial Solutions & Consultancy Services, ANA Logistics, Stratcom Advisory Pvt Ltd, Invision Research & Communications Pvt Ltd, Incore Agro Business and Invision Strategic & Regulatory Affairs Consulting Pvt Ltd. 

Neeraj Daftuar said it’s “wrong to say that nine acres of land was taken for Rs 75 lakh”. “After this company was formed, these people bought land for Rs 2.73 crore. They had given Rs 50 lakh as advance and the rest in post-dated cheques. But they couldn’t pay the rest of the money. Then they spoke to us. These people took Rs 2.93 crore from my wife and son as the cost of the land and took the cost of the registry separately. Later they took another Rs 75 lakh as profit. Overall, more than Rs 4 crore was spent by us. It is wrong to say that nine acres of land was taken for Rs 75 lakh.”

Asked if he has evidence to support the claim that more money was paid to Lamba and Chandna, Daftuar said, “I have the papers but I cannot share them.”

Asked about allegations that the land cost a lot more than Rs 3.5 crore, he said, “You can write anything. (Laughs). You also know, so do I. Leave the rest aside.”

Anupam Daftuar could not be reached for comment. Aditya Daftuar hung up the phone claiming poor network reception.

Newslaundry reached out to the office of the Directorate of Town and Country Planning to talk to Babita Gupta, who was the district town planner when the land transfer took place, but was told that she has been transferred. This report will be updated if a response is received.