New Delhi, Nov 17 (PTI) The Congress on Friday accused the BJP government of benefitting the Adani Group by relaxing norms for the Dharavi redevelopment project in Mumbai.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh alleged that as per reports the Maharashtra Urban Development Department – which had originally expressed its reservations about relaxing the rules – 'has been compelled to issue a notification that removes the provision of indexation in Dharavi's real estate Transferable Development Rights (TDR) and made it mandatory for all Mumbai builders to buy the first 40 percent of their TDRs from Adani.' 'This has the effect of greatly increasing the value of TDRs accruing to Adani – and Adani alone – from the Dharavi project,' he alleged.

There was no immediate response from the Adani Group.

In a statement, the Congress leader said the party had in its 'Hum Adani ke Hain Kaun (HAHK) series' raised questions on the matter on February 27 and April 23 this year.

'We asked the prime minister questions about how the Adani Group was allowed to bag the Dharavi Redevelopment Project in 2022 with a bid of only Rs 5,069 crore, lower by Rs 2,131 crore than the original winning bid in 2018. And this was after the original winning bidder was excluded,' he said.

Ramesh said TDR is a transferable credit that allows builders who agree to give up their rights to build in sensitive areas – for reasons related to the environment, historical or cultural significance or similar reason – to be compensated with extra construction rights in other approved areas.

However, he said, the decision to remove indexation means that TDRs generated in low-cost areas like Dharavi can be used to develop expensive real estate in premium locations such as Bandra, south Mumbai and Juhu.  'These policy changes are expected to further push up prices in Mumbai's already expensive housing market,' he claimed.

'This one policy change that benefits only Adani is yet another 'revdi' (freebies) offered to the prime minister's most favoured business group,' he charged.

'Is there no sector of the economy that is not being converted into a Modi-made Monopoly (3M) for his friends? What is the nature of this strong Electoral Bond between the BJP and Adani? Only a JPC can unravel the full truth,' Ramesh alleged in his statement.  The Congress has been targeting the Adani group, accusing it of benefitting from the BJP government and has been demanding a JPC probe into the allegations made by by a US Research group Hindenburg.

The business conglomerate has denied any wrongdoing on its part. PTI SKC DV DV