Noida: The Yamuna Expressway Authority on Saturday cancelled the allotment of 1,000 hectares of land to Jaypee Group on which India's only Formula One motor racing circuit is built in Greater Noida over non-payment of dues, officials said.
The embattled business group, however, told PTI that it has invested about Rs 4,400 crore in the project and would challenge the cancellation of the land in the court of law. The decision to cancel the land allotment was taken by the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) during its 66th Board meeting.
"A thousand hectare land was allotted to Jaypee Sports Limited, an affiliate of Jaypee group, in YEIDA's special economic zone. Jaypee Sports Limited has been defaulting on payments to YEIDA and not completing projects promised to buyers," YEIDA CEO Arunvir Singh said. The business group defaulted on payments of over Rs 500 crore, he added. The Jaypee Group had sub-leased plots to 11 builders on the allocated land and separately had taken around Rs 2,000 crore from homebuyers in 10 projects but not delivered it, he said.
"So, in light of the violation of lease deeds, it was decided during the board meeting that the land allotment be cancelled," Singh said. However, the authority said modalities are being worked out to safeguard the interests of third parties and homebuyers who had invested in projects on this land parcel. Senior Vice President, Jaypee Group, Ashok Kheda said, "We have paid Rs 2,400 crore for the land between 2009 and 2015. Rs 400 crore were remaining to be paid on which the interest has now swollen to make total dues around Rs 700 crore of which three installments have been defaulted by us."
He said the group has additionally invested Rs 2,000 crore on the Buddha International Racing circuit. "We will challenge the YEIDA's decision to cance land allotment in court now," Kheda said.
