Don't table JK House resolution: Rival camp

The rival faction of Singhania family has asked the Raymond board to not to take up contentious resolution number 10, which deals with the sale of flats in JK House, at the annual general meeting (AGM) scheduled to be held  in Ratnagiri on Monday.

Resolution number 10 seeks approval for the sale of four duplex flats on Breach Candy Road in Mumbai to the family members including Raymond chairman and managing director Gautam Singhania, his father Vijaypat Singhania and cousins Akshaypat and Anant Singhania (with mother Veena Singhania) at a price of Rs 9,200 per square feet.

Citing various “material suppressions and misleading statements” and non-disclosure of restrictive covenants of the 2007 tripartite agreement in the explanatory statement to the resolution, Anant Singhania and Veena Singhania alleged that Chairman and Managing Director Gautam Singhania built a lavish triplex penthouse on the top floors of JK House and had moved in. In his ambition to better Mukesh Ambani’s Antilla, Gautam wants to have the entire building for himself and is ready to deprive his father, cousins and aunt. 

“We do not comment on speculations and misplaced information,” a Raymond spokesperson said, when asked for comments on the allegations. 

“That the explanatory statement is crafted to mislead is obvious from concrete illustrative indisputable facts illustrated hereunder. Obviously, key individuals in positions of responsibility are acting in a manner as required by 

Mr Gautam, who has treated the reconstructed JK House to be his personal residence. JK House was reconstructed to match the lavish lifestyle of Mr Gautam to achieve his ambition to better Mr Mukesh Ambani’s Antilla and deny other members of the family their rights in the JK House including his own father Dr Vijaypat Singhania. We, legitimate and genuine tenants in occupation, had in good faith handed over our premises in our occupation on the representations of Raymond,” Veena and Anant sent in a letter addressed to Raymond and its board of directors.

According to Veena and Anant, the redevelopment of JK House was to be completed within three years, but took 10 years. The original JK House was a 14-storey structure. The new one consists of 33 storeys that include a basement, a grand Raymond showroom measuring about 500 square metres, eight  floors for car parking (94 parking spaces), four floors of museum, two floors of office space, one floor for the swimming pool/fitness centre, apart from the residential areas. 

The explanatory statement had put the cost of construction at Rs 11,000 per square feet, which meant the proposed sale price was not enough to even cover this.

The letter also said the “projected cost of Rs 270 crore for the construction is more to meet the personal requirement of Mr Gautam for his lavish lifestyle of not only his personal residence but also for parking for his large numbers of cars.”

The mother-son duo invited the shareholders and other stakeholders to take the inspection of the reconstructed JK House and “particularly the triplex penthouse on the top floor” occupied by Gautam. “This will give a clear picture of who is truly safeguarding the shareholder interest and misleading the shareholders in respect of a genuine contract requiring Raymond to give us our flat in ordinary course,” they said. They demanded that the letter be disseminated to all shareholders to present the true picture as required by Regulation 30 of the Sebi Listing obligations and disclosure requirements regulations.