Malik paid only ₹20 lakh to usurp Goawala Compound spread over 3-acres: ED | Mumbai news - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Malik paid only 20 lakh to usurp Goawala Compound spread over 3-acres: ED

May 21, 2022 11:29 PM IST

Mumbai Maharashtra minority development and Aukaf minister Nawab Malik paid only ₹20 lakh to acquire Goawala Compound in Kurla in a deal dating back to September 2005, and paid the amount to people other than the owner of the three-acre compound, Munira Plumber, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said in its 5,000-page chargesheet

Mumbai Maharashtra minority development and Aukaf minister Nawab Malik paid only 20 lakh to acquire Goawala Compound in Kurla in a deal dating back to September 2005, and paid the amount to people other than the owner of the three-acre compound, Munira Plumber, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said in its 5,000-page chargesheet.

Mumbai, India - March 07, 2022: NCP leader and Maharashtra Minister Nawab Malik being taken to the Sessions Court from ED Office, in Mumbai, India, on Monday, March 07, 2022. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/ HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)
Mumbai, India - March 07, 2022: NCP leader and Maharashtra Minister Nawab Malik being taken to the Sessions Court from ED Office, in Mumbai, India, on Monday, March 07, 2022. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/ HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

The 63-year-old Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader who is minister in-charge of Aukaf, or the department that regulates Muslim public charitable trusts (wakf), was arrested on February 23, in connection with a money-laundering case registered against fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar and his close associates like Shakeel Shaikh Babu Moiuddin aka Chhota Shakeel, Ibrahim Mushtaq Abdul Razzaq Memon aka Tigar Memon.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The ED in its chargesheet claimed, “For usurping the property, Haseena Parkar [Dawood’s sister now deceased], Nawab Malik, Salim Patel and Sardar Khan [currently lodged in Aurangabad central prison for his role in the March 1993 Mumbai serial bombings] conspired among themselves and after several rounds of meetings amicably settled the issue by distributing the property among themselves without paying a penny to Mrs Munira S. Plumber.”

Malik denied the charges which were first raised by leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis last November. Fadnavis claimed that a company controlled by Malik’s family purchased the land from a man who was Parkar’s frontman, and for far lesser than its market rate.

ED’s arguments

In the chargesheet filed on April 21 — HT has seen parts of it — the ED named Sardar Shahvali Khan, who is serving life term at Aurangabad central prison for his role in the March 1993 serial bombings in Mumbai, and two of Malik’s family firms, M/s. Solidus Investments Pvt. Ltd. and M/s. Malik Infrastructure, as accused in this case.

The ED registered its case based on a first information report filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on February 3, as part of its probe into the Dawood gang’s involvement in arms smuggling, narco-terrorism, money laundering, circulating fake currency notes and unauthorised possession of assets.

ED claimed that Malik and Parkar connived to usurp the land using a fabricated power of attorney, after the death of Plumber’s father, Fazleabbas Goawala, following which “nobody was looking after the property”.

The chargesheet quoting Sardar Khan’s testimony further stated that Malik along with a purported local muscleman “illegally” occupied a store in the compound in 1992, and later got the tenancy registered in the name of Malik’s brother, Aslam Malik.

In 1999, Parkar’s aide Salim Patel, her driver-cum-bodyguard, allegedly met Plumber, posing as a social worker and convinced her to hand over the power of attorney to him so that he could help her clear all encroachments in the compound as well as settle disputes with her tenants.

The ED claimed that Patel, on Parkar’s instructions, also fabricated a supplementary power of attorney in 1999, which gave him the right to sell the Goawala compound. Later, Patel allegedly transferred Aslam Malik’s rented store to Solidus Investments [also owned by Malik’s family].

The property was valued at 3.54 crore as per Ready Reckoner rates (land rates fixed by the state government for charging stamp duty) at the time, but the agreement for sale, which Malik entered into in 2005, mentioned 30 lakh as the total price and 25 lakh was paid to Patel in two instalments of 15 lakh and 10 lakh. Plumber said in her statement that she did not receive any consideration for the property. The chargesheet also claimed that Patel was supposed to pay Plumber the consideration received by him, but he did not.

Malik’s refutations

The ED officials recorded three statements of the old NCP leader. The first was recorded before his arrest. According to statement Malik told the ED, “In the Goawala compound they were having godown there and shops. His brother Aslam Malik was looking after it. They were having these godown and shops since 1995 on tenancy basis.”

Malik further told the ED that there were encroachments in the open area of the compound, which his brother Aslam Malik sought to “stop the same”.

“Actually, Sardar Khan was behind this illegal encroachment. When they stopped this illegal encroachment, one Salim Patel approached Aslam Malik to take over the ownership of this property,” the statement read.

Malik then directed Aslam to verify the ownership of the property and accordingly Aslam met Plumber and she confirmed to Aslam that Patel had the power of attorney to take decisions on her behalf, according to the politician’s statement. Thereafter, Malik said, negotiations took place between Aslam and Patel and eventually in September 2005 the entire compound — along with the encroachments — was registered in the name of, Solidus Investments, which is owned by Malik’s family.

During his ED custody, Malik’s statements were recorded on February 28 and April 6 as well, during which time he clarified that the sale deed was executed between his brother Aslam and Patel for four shops and two godowns in Goawala Compound and not the entire compound, but it was not possible to sub-divide the entire plot. He said that a road ran through the property and portions of the plot were shown as being reserved for building a garden in the city’s Development Plan.

Malik claimed that after his registration of the agreement for purchasing the Goawala Compound, Sardar Shahvali Khan, lodged currently in Aurangabad central prison for his role in the March 1993 Mumbai serial bombings, registered a small portion of the property within the compound (about 378 square metres) following which they purchased the property occupied by Khan (by paying him 5 lakh).

The original owner of the land, Munira Plumber, has however maintained that she had given power of attorney to Patel only to remove the encroachments from the compound, and not for any other purpose, like for creating third party interests or to dispose it of. She had also denied having ever met Malik or any member of the NCP leader’s family.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On