Rajasthan govt sealed Lalit Modi owned havelis

Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) has sealed two havelis (traditional Rajasthani-style buildings) belonging to companies owned by former Indian Premier League chief Lalit Modi in the Amber Palace area, on the outskirts of the capital. The civic body on Wednesday resorted to the step on the basis of findings of an enquiry instituted by the Congress government here six months ago that the structures — partly in a dilapidated state — belonged to the government. The havelis — Bairathon Ki Haveli and Chhabron Ki Haveli — perched on the hillocks in the vicinity of the historical Amber Fort, changed hands in 2007 when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government headed by Vasundhara Raje government was in power. The ownership of Bairathon Ki Haveli was transferred and registered in the name of Online Construction Pvt. Limited while the ownership of Chhabron Ki Haveli was transferred to the Heritage City Construction Pvt. Limited of which Minal, wife of Lalit Modi is the director. The director of Online Construction Company is Shobha Kilachand, considered to be a close affiliate of Ms. Raje.