Thursday, July 21 2005 19:22 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Mumbai: Shiv Sena leader Manohar Joshi promoted Kohinoor CTN Ltd today (July 21, 2005) purchased Kohinoor Mill No. 3, a prime Mumbai property, with a winning bid of Rs 421 crore at an auction conducted by the National Textile Corporation.

Financial services group Indiabulls won the auction for another prime NTC property Elphinstone Mills with a bid of Rs 441.75 crore.

Kohinoor CTN Ltd, a joint venture between Kohinoor group promoted by Joshi and Matoshree Realties of Rajan Shirodkar, a close associate of Shiva Sena supremo Bal Thackeray's nephew Raj Thackeray, had outbid three others to get the property of Kohinoor Mill No. 3.

The 4.8 acre Kohinoor mill land in Dadar, a prime real estate near Shivaji Park and a city landmark located near Shiv Sena headquarters 'Sena Bhavan,' could be a prospective site for shopping complexes as well as residential colony, according to real estate dealers.

But the Joshi promoted group failed to clinch the Elphinstone Mills auction, in which three other players outbid it.

The bids were opened today in the presence of NTC chairman and managing director K Ramchandran Pillai. Indiabulls' bid fetched it the 7.76-acre prime land of Elphinstone Mill in Parel, also in central Mumbai, NTC Chairman and Managing Director K Ramchandra Pillai told reporters in Mumbai.

Of the five bidders, Akruti Nirman made the second highest bid of Rs 277 crore, followed by Passion Builders with Rs 265.21 crore and Kohinoor CTNL with a bid of Rs 250 crore.

However, the sale order for Elphinstone Mills would not be given to the highest bidder until the Bombay High Court, which is hearing a case filed by the former owner against the nationalisation of the mill, delivers the final order, Pillai said.

With the two auctions today, NTC has so far put its five properties in Mumbai under the hammer in the last three months, mopping up Rs 1,158 crore. Those auctioned earlier were Jupiter Mill, Mumbai Mills and Apollo Mills.

The Supreme Court allowed NTC to sell seven of its defunct mills. Of its 25 mills in the city, as many as 16 have ceased to function.

The auction of the three mills last month had raised a controversy as NTC's south Maharashtra chief V K Tripathi was eased out of office and is presently on leave.