Former Lodha Developers Ltd (LDL) whole-time director Rajendra Lodha has been arrested by the Mumbai Crime Branch in connection with an alleged ₹100 crore land scam. Police claim Lodha sold a company-owned plot in Panvel to an associate and later arranged for LDL to repurchase it at a significantly inflated price.
The case involves an 8,850 sq mtrs land parcel in Shirdon, Panvel, originally acquired by LDL in 2017 from Aparna Puranik, widow of former employee Mangesh Puranik, who held the property on the company’s behalf since 2013. After his death, Aparna signed a power of attorney (POA) in Lodha’s favour.
Investigators allege that in June 2022, Lodha used the POA to sell the land to his associate, Ritesh Narsana, for just ₹5 lakh, citing development issues. Then, in October 2024, he allegedly orchestrated LDL’s repurchase of the same plot from Narsana for ₹2.65 crore, pocketing the gains.
LDL discovered irregularities on July 23 when Lodha made an incomplete disclosure of outside interests to the company secretary, as required under law. A subsequent review against Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) records revealed serious discrepancies. When asked to share his asset details, Lodha allegedly refused and chose to resign, citing health reasons.
An ethics committee probe by LDL flagged multiple suspicious transactions amounting to nearly ₹100 crore. The company filed a complaint, leading to an FIR on September 16. Lodha was arrested on September 17 and has been remanded in police custody until September 23 as investigations continue.
