Real estate giant MGF accuses former partner Emaar of committing Rs 1,000 crore fraud, FIR filed

MGF Developments Ltd. on Wednesday claimed that its former partner Dubai-based real estate firm Emaar committed fraud to the tune of Rs 1,000 crore in the sale of land at an under-valued price in the Delhi-NCR region.

Based on the complaint filed by MGF, the Gurugram police registered an FIR against Emaar under Sections 406, 409, 418, 420, 467, 471, 506 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code on November 20. Another prominent real estate services firm Jones Lang Lasalle ( JLL) has also been named in the complaint for assisting Emaar.

MGF first approached the District Courts. Following the directions of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM), the Gurugram Police registered the FIR against Emaar and JLL on November 20.

According to the complaint, JLL and its officers, appointed as valuers, conspired with Emaar to prepare false reports, grossly undervaluing land owned by MGF. JLL allegedly lowered prices in the settlement of indemnity claims while increasing the quantum of claims illegally.

Later, Emaar allegedly took over and disposed of the said properties after pocketing a huge profit. The cumulative impact of these actions is estimated to have resulted in a wrongful gain of at least Rs 1000 crore to the accused.

The complainant has also pointed at the potential destruction of electronic evidence related to the conspiracy, raising questions about the transparency and integrity of the accused.

"In order to settle claims Emaar undervalued the assets to a great deal so that we can get it at a much lower value. In doing so, they received windfall gains while we were at loss. They were helped by JLL which was tasked with the responsibility of valuing the assets," Saurabh Singh of MGF told Republic.

"We have registered the FIR and have begun our investigations. It will be too early to mention our findings," said an official from Gurugram Police.

The fight between EMAAR and MGF developments has widened ever since their split back in 2016. Subsequently, the relationship between the two firms has taken an acrimonious turn with both the firms making grave allegations against each other. Having come together in 2002, Emaar and MGF together were among the largest real estate developers in the country with several huge commercial and residential projects in Delhi-NCR.