An 81-year-old man, who claims to be a schoolmate of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has received major relief in a land dispute after a firm linked to a BJP MLA backed down, days after he met the PM.
Asgarali Vohra, a resident of Mira Road in Maharashtra’s Thane district, said he attended BN School in Gujarat’s Vadnagar with Modi.
He met Modi on September 8 with an appeal for a CBI probe into the dispute over a piece of land in Palghar district.
Earlier, Vohra had said that the matter concerned a 2,810 square metre prime plot in Navghar in Bhayander East that he had bought in 1989. He alleged that it was encroached upon by two firms, Swayam Builders and Seven Eleven Constructions, in 2011.
The two firms are linked to BJP MLA Narendra Mehta, he had claimed.
In a dramatic turn of events, Seven Eleven Construction Private Limited has now completely backed down in the matter.
Official documents show that the company submitted a letter to the Assistant Director of Town Planning at the Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation, formally surrendering its commencement certificate for the plot.
The company said it had purchased the plot via a registered deed on June 13, 2019, and secured construction permission on April 17, 2026, but was returning the permit due to the ongoing ownership dispute.
In its communication, the developer requested that the municipal corporation cancel the permission and refund all fees previously deposited for its project at the location.
The firm has also moved to clear the legal hurdles it had imposed on the landowner.
According to sources, Narendra Mehta reached out through Vohra’s associate, Ajay Dhokha, to initiate the withdrawal of a 2015 police complaint that had accused both Vohra and Dhokha of criminal trespassing and intimidation.
Official letters confirming the withdrawal of the police complaint and the surrender of the construction permit were submitted to the respective authorities just ahead of a crucial municipal hearing scheduled for September 16.
Vohra had said that forged documents were created without his knowledge to fraudulently split the plot between the two entities, and despite the registration of an FIR in 2015, justice had eluded him.
The octogenarian said he was confident the issue would be resolved after his meeting with the PM, where he sought a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
He said things had begun moving in the case, with municipal officials calling the management of the two firms on September 16 for an explanation.
Maharashtra transport minister and senior Shiv Sena leader Pratap Sarnaik had shared photos, expressing confidence that the PM would ensure justice for his “schoolmate”.
(With inputs from PTI)