BUMPY RIDE

Calcutta, Aug. 28: A Chennai court has concluded that real estate developer VGN Enterprise had wrongfully and forcibly taken away eight acres from the Ambattur factory of Dunlop.

In the order, the executive magistrate and revenue district officer of Ponneri said the land should be given back to Dunlop.

The case was filed by the deputy commissioner of police (Ambattur range) following an FIR filed by Dunlop after VGN stormed its Chennai factory and pulled down a wall and erected its own with the tacit support of a section of Dunlop workers on July 30.

The Pawan Ruia-led management suspended work at the factory following the incident earlier this month.

The police sought directions from the court on the FIR as VGN maintained they were the rightful owners of the land bought from Dunlop’s erstwhile Chhabria management through a public auction. The sale was registered too.

While the district court’s order has come as a relief to Dunlop, it is sure to be challenged at a higher court.

A VGN official admitted to have lost at the lower court but vowed to fight back.

“We are studying the order. We think it’s a biased one. VGN will not give up. The company believes it owns the land,” the official added.

Dunlop had sold 60.86 acres to VGN for Rs 24.34 crore in 2004 before Ruia took over the company.

VGN plans to build a residential complex there. However, the company took possession of 53 acres only as the remaining eight acres were within the Dunlop factory premises. The BIFR had said only land not in use by the company could be sold. Dunlop said it was ready to give the money back for 8 acres but VGN declined, probably because property prices had jumped after VGN bought it.