A sea-facing apartment in Juhu once associated with the late stockbroker Harshad Mehta the infamous “Big Bull” of Dalal Street has been listed once again for auction by a special court overseeing securities-related offences. The renewed auction attempt underlines the city’s enduring challenges with disposing of legacy properties entangled in financial litigation.
The 1,150 sq ft flat is located on the second floor of the Vandana Cooperative Housing Society in the Janki Kutir complex, a leafy residential pocket near the iconic Prithvi Theatre. The special court approved the sale on an “as is, where is” basis earlier in October, allowing interested buyers to purchase the property in its existing condition. According to legal filings, the apartment was registered under the name of a partner of Romil Exports, a firm associated with Orion Travels a company in which Harshad and his brother Ashwin Mehta were partners. The court listed the partner as a judgment debtor, a term referring to individuals ordered to repay debt following judicial proceedings.
Real estate consultants estimate that similar unencumbered properties in the same building fetch between ₹45,000 and ₹50,000 per square foot, potentially valuing the flat at over ₹5 crore. However, past auctions in 2021, 2023 and February 2025 failed to attract bidders, likely due to both the apartment’s legal complexities and its association with one of India’s most infamous financial scandals.The Juhu flat is among several assets seized and sold since the exposure of the 1992 securities scam, which saw Mehta manipulate stock prices through fraudulent transactions and fake bank receipts to inflate market valuations. Over the years, eight of Mehta’s Worli-based properties were auctioned off in 2009 for ₹32.6 crore, signalling a gradual unwinding of his asset trail.
Urban real estate observers note that the slow liquidation of such assets reveals structural weaknesses in Mumbai’s property auction framework. Legal ambiguities, title disputes, and historical stigma tend to deter potential buyers, leaving valuable urban assets in prolonged limbo. A senior real estate analyst said, “Legacy financial properties often face dual challenges uncertain ownership and emotional perception making them difficult to integrate into the city’s active realty market.”For a city where every square foot counts, stalled auctions like this also highlight a larger issue: the inefficiency of asset recovery in India’s urban justice system.
Experts suggest that reforms in property valuation, legal transparency, and digital auction platforms could accelerate such processes, allowing previously disputed spaces to re-enter Mumbai’s housing cycle more productively.As the Juhu flat reappears on the market, it symbolises both Mumbai’s glamorous real estate ambitions and the shadows of its financial past a reminder that urban progress is often built on the layers of its own history.
Mumbai Court To Auction Harshad Mehta’s ₹5 Crore Sea-Facing Juhu Apartment Again
