NEW DELHI: The CBI has registered a case of alleged cheating and criminal conspiracy against former Disinvestment Secretary Pradeep Baijal, Bharat Hotels and others in connection with disinvestment of Laxmi Vilas Palace Hotel, a unit of ITDC, at much below the prescribed rates resulting in huge monetary loss to the government during the NDA-I rule in 2002.
It is alleged that during the period 2001-02, Laxmi Vilas Palace Hotel, Udaipur, a Heritage Hotel and one of the units of Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), Govt of India, spread in 29 acres of prime location land with 54 rooms with all accessories, was first drastically undervalued and then sold to Bharat Hotels at an undervalued price of `7.52 crore. “However, as per then DLC rates of land on which the said hotel is situated, it was worth `151 crore (approx) and in this way, an alleged loss of `143.48 crore (approx) was caused to the ITDC, Department of Tourism,” a CBI spokesperson said. Those named in the FIR include Baijal, who was then Secretary Disinvestment; Ashish Guha, the then Managing Director of Lazard India; Kantilal Karamsey Vikamsey, owner of Kanti Karamsey and company and authorised representative of Bharat Hotel.