DLF gets ₹235 cr notice over Mall of India land compensation; stock trades flat

Real estate developer DLF has been served notice by the Noida Authority to pay ₹235 crore as compensation to the previous owner of the land on which the Mall of India has been built. As per a report, the notice was issued on December 23 and the amount has to be remitted in 15 days.

The notice was issued as the Supreme Court in its order on May 5 had directed the Noida Authority to ensure payment of compensation for the land to its previous owner Veeranna Reddy. A major part of the compensation to Reddy has remained unpaid, as per report.

DLF Mall of India, one of the biggest and largest shopping malls in India spread over 2 million square feet, is situated in Sector 18, Noida's commercial hub. The land where the mall has been built was acquired by the Noida Authority, which comes under the Uttar Pradesh government's Industrial Development Ministry, in 2005 Reddy and was later auctioned to DLF.

Reacting to the news, DLF shares witnessed volatile trade in the opening session on Tuesday. The stock opened a tad higher at ₹373.75 against the previous closing price of ₹370.60 on the BSE. The stock, however, soon lost momentum and slipped in negative terrain to ₹369.20 levels. Meanwhile, the benchmark index BSE Sensex was trading 103 points lower at 60,463 levels, tracking mixed cues from global peers.

With a market capitalisation (m-cap) of ₹91,673 crore, DLF share price has given a negative return of 6.5% in the calendar year 2022, despite rising over 16% in the past six months. The realty stock has fallen 6% each in a month as compared to 3% drop in BSE Sensex during the same period. The share touched its 52-week high of ₹429.80 on January 18, 2022, while it hit a 52-week low of ₹294.75 on May 20, 2022.

In a separate development, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has set aside an order passed by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in a case against DLF and directed the fair trade regulator to re-examine the matter. The CCI had rejected a complaint against DLF and its subsidiary for alleged abuse of the dominant position on the basis of a second/supplementary report from Director General (DG). The case pertains to Regal Garden in Sector 90, DLF Garden City, Gurugram, where a complaint was lodged against the real estate major for alleged abuse of dominance by DLF Home Developers in the clauses in the buyer-seller agreement.