Institute of Chartered Accountants of India's Rs 100 crore land deal cancelled

The controversial Rs 100 crore land deal that had raised questions on adherence ofcorporate governance norms at the Institute ofChartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has finally been quashed. This may be the first instance of a decision taken by an ICAI president being struck down by the central council, the governing body of ICAI.

The apex body of financial regulators is presently headed by Nagpur-based chartered accountantJaideep Shah. He was actively involved in getting approval for the proposal to buy 2 lakh square feet of property at Luxora Township at Pipla on the city's outskirts for Rs 100 crore. Shah, whose term ends in February, also maintained secrecy in the entire transaction, with even many council members unaware of the decision. There were plans to build a centre of excellence, basically a soft-skill training institute, here.

Such a price for the remote location raised many eyebrows and a fact-finding committee with six members was formed. On Wednesday, the committee's report was put up before the central council, which has cancelled the deal.