MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) has approached the state government to recover its prime plot in
Bandra
that was allotted to former India skipper and legendary opening batsman
Sunil Gavaskar over 30 years ago.
The first man to overtake the great
Don Bradman's mark of 29 Test hundreds, Gavaskar, had sought the plot to build a "
cricket
academy" to groom new talent, but three decades later, not a brick has been laid.
The land parcel will most likely be now allotted to Gavaskar's former opening partner and Mumbai teammate
Lalchand Rajput.
The chief officer of MHADA's Mumbai Board, B Radhakrishnan said, "This is an ongoing exercise. We have taken action against other prominent personalities in similar cases before."
Official records say, MHADA had leased the land to a trust started by Gavaskar to set up the academy.
The plot in question spans approximately 2,000 sq ft and is located near Rangsharda Hotel in Bandra East. "The state government had allotted it to the Sunil Gavaskar Cricket Foundation Trust (SGCFT) around 1986. But not only has no sports academy been founded, there is also the threat of encroachment. We have asked the state to cancel his allotment," said another MHADA officer from Bandra Division.
Calls and messages to Gavaskar go unanswered
Gavaskar's company, Professional Management Group (PMG), said he was out of the country and not available for comment until the weekend.