Bombay High Court upholds Adani Properties’ Dharavi slum rehabilitation bid | Company Business News

The Bombay High Court has upheld the Maharashtra State Housing Department’s award of the Dharavi Slum Rehabilitation Project to Adani Properties Pvt. Ltd., dismissing a legal challenge from Dubai-based Seclink Technology Corp. The ruling clears the way for the Gautam Adani-promoted entity to lead the redevelopment of the 259-hectare slum in central Mumbai, one of Asia’s largest.

Seclink, which lost the bid to Adani in 2022, had argued that its ₹7,200 crore offer was higher and more deserving than Adani’s ₹5,069 crore bid. It alleged that the state’s decision to cancel an earlier tender process and issue a fresh one had been biased, violating principles of natural justice.

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Seclink’s lawyer told Mint they will challenge the order in the Supreme Court.

In its judgment, a division bench comprising chief justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and justice Amit Borkar ruled that the petition lacked merit. The court said that Seclink’s claim that the conditions of fresh tender were embodied only to oust it from participation and instead suit Adani was misconceived.

“The grounds urged in support of the petition lack force, and accordingly, the challenge to the impugned action on the part of the authorities, of cancelling an earlier tender process and resorting to a fresh tender process fails”, the court said in its judgment. Mint has seen the copy of the judgement.

The Dharavi redevelopment project gained momentum in 2016 when the Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena government, led by Devendra Fadnavis, prepared a Detailed Project Report (DPR). In 2018, the administration approved a new model for the project, paving the way for bidding.

Seclink initially emerged as the highest bidder in January 2019. However, the Maharashtra government terminated the tender in November 2020, citing changes in project requirements.

In November 2022, Adani Properties secured the redevelopment contract with a ₹5,069 crore bid and an additional ₹2,800 crore mandatory payment to the Railway Land Development Authority (RLDA), bringing the total commitment to ₹7,869 crore—surpassing Seclink’s bid.

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Seclink, dissatisfied with the outcome, returned to the Bombay High Court in 2023 for a second legal challenge. The company previously claimed that, despite being named the highest bidder in January 2019, the government had unfairly dismissed its tender.

Seclink contended that its ₹7,200 crore bid was higher and that the government’s decision to terminate the process in 2020 was biased, ultimately enabling Adani Properties to secure the project.

The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) countered, stating that a fresh tender was issued in 2022 after a 45-acre plot was identified to replace railway land in the project plan. Adani qualified under this revised tender, but Seclink argued there were no material differences between the original and new tenders, as both included railway land.

The Maharashtra government defended the new tender, describing it as transparent and inclusive. Officials highlighted that the revised terms addressed the rehabilitation of approximately seven lakh non-eligible slum residents—an element absent in the original tender. They also noted that the new tender required a ₹2,800 crore payment to the RLDA for incorporating railway land into the project.

The government further argued that Seclink, finding the revised conditions unfavourable, chose not to participate in the bidding process and instead raised baseless allegations.

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The court noted that if Seclink had objections to the bid conditions in the fresh tender, it should have raised them at an appropriate time. Failing to challenge the conditions before the opening of the financial bid makes a subsequent challenge inadmissible.

It emphasized that the authority issuing the tender is best positioned to determine its requirements, warranting minimal judicial interference.

The high court’s decision validates the government’s approach and clears hurdles for Adani Properties to proceed with the urban renewal project, which has been lauded as a transformative initiative for Mumbai.

Seclink and Adani Properties have not yet responded to Mint’s queries.