industry

Iconic Goa bungalow ‘Palacio Aguada’ sale clears legal hurdle, Pinky Reddy registers deal


Palacio Aguada, a secluded carved-from-a-mountain sea-facing property in North Goa, now belongs to Pinky Reddy, wife of GVK Group vice chairman Sanjay Reddy, who has purchased it for Rs 80 crore, multiple persons with direct knowledge of the development told ET.

The deal for the sprawling bungalow property spread over 5 acres, previously owned by the late entrepreneur Jimmy Gazdar, was set to close in June, but its conclusion got delayed due to some last-minute legal hurdles.

Its registration was finally concluded on Friday, the sources said.

This is one of the costliest property transactions concluded in Goa in the recent past.

Credwyn Holdings (India), a Kolkata-based non-banking finance company (NBFC), had sought a stay on the deal, citing an old claim on Gazdar.

The transaction has now been concluded after the Calcutta High Court modified its earlier injunction to allow the sale but asked to keep a part of the proceeds in a separate account till the Credwyn suit is resolved.

“My client Credwyn Holdings had a claim against Gazdar, the late owner of the property and the court had initially granted us an injunction,” said Shwetank Ginodia, partner at Kolkata-based legal firm R Ginodia & Co. “The court has now protected our claim by requiring the seller to put aside a sum of Rs 6.26 crore in a separate account pending determination of the suit.”

An email query to Pinky Reddy’s team remained unanswered until the time of going to press, while transaction advisor India Sotheby’s International Realty declined to comment.

Palacio Aguada – with its expansive swimming pools, a cave, dance floors, and a tea garden – was a hot venue for the who’s who since the 1980s, having hosted several prominent national international personalities.

The bungalow with over 13,000 sq ft carpet area sits across its own hillside in Sinquerim of North Goa, and looks over the mouth of the Mandovi River onto the Arabian Sea.

The property with castle-like peach-coloured domes, zig-zag staircases and meandering balustrades, stretching across landscaped multi-level gardens, is a mere five-minute drive from Fort Aguada.

Reddy is planning to convert it into an international and exclusive destination for wellness, people cited earlier said.

The property’s original architect, Gerard da Cunha has been assigned the mandate to undertake the renovations, they said.

Gazdar’s niece Rita Mehta, who inherited the property, is said to be a close friend of Reddy’s mother.

Reddy first visited this villa for the New Year’s party in 2000 and she was impressed with the design and aesthetics of this one-of-a-kind super luxury space, sources said.

Goa has always been on the rich and wealthy Indians’ radar for property acquisitions and high-end sea-facing luxury villas are high on their wish list.

The second home, leisure property market and even vacant plots in the state have been attracting robust interest, particularly following the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.



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