In a recent development, the Bank of Baroda, a state-owned financial institution, has announced the withdrawal of the auction notice concerning the bungalow owned by actor and BJP MP Sunny Deol, located in Mumbai’s Juhu area.
The bank attributed this withdrawal to technical reasons, citing it as a standard industry practice employed in similar cases. Furthermore, it has come to light that Sunny Deol has initiated discussions with the bank to settle the outstanding dues associated with the property.
The bank’s statement clarified that the auction notice did not specify the precise amount of dues slated for recovery. The notice was grounded in a symbolic claim of ownership over the property, and the bank has now applied for physical possession of the property.
The basis for the auction notice was derived from Rule 8(6) of The Security Interest (Enforcement) Rules 2002, which pertains to symbolic possession of properties. The bank has also submitted an application for acquiring physical possession, a request that is currently pending for approval before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, with a submission date of August 1, 2023.
Gadar 2 Actor Sunny Deol’s response to the bank’s action involves his acknowledgment of the property’s ongoing usage. Consequently, the sales process will adhere to the provisions of the SARFAESI Act, an act that empowers financial institutions and banks to take possession of defaulting borrowers’ assets without requiring court intervention.
Gadar 2 Sunny Deol’s Juhu Property, Actor Seeks Dues Settlement
In the interim, Sunny Deol has expressed his intent to engage with the bank to address the outstanding dues, as indicated in the sale notice published on August 20, 2023. This notice informed the borrower and guarantors of their entitlement to redeem the property by settling the remaining dues, costs, charges, and expenses prior to the auction.
Sunny Deol’s property, commonly referred to as Sunny Villa, was initially slated for an e-auction to recover ₹56 crore. This online auction was scheduled for August 25 and was announced on Sunday. The loan default that led to this action occurred in December 2022, involving a ₹55.99 crore loan from the Bank of Baroda.
The Bank of Baroda, in a subsequent statement, clarified the withdrawal of the auction notice by referring to it as a “Corrigendum to e-auction notice.” The bank had previously announced the commencement of the auction for the Juhu property, Sunny Villa, at a base price of ₹51.43 crore, with a minimum bid amount of ₹5.14 crore.