The law has tightened its grip on a major builder group that defrauded thousands of people who dreamed of building their own homes in the National Capital Region (NCR). In a major action, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached immovable properties worth Rs 585.46 crore of this real estate group. This entire action has been taken under the stringent provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), which has created a stir in the real estate sector.
The investigating agency seized more than 340 plots spread across six major cities of NCR including Gurugram, Ghaziabad and Meerut.
The scope of this big action extends to many major cities of NCR. The places where the investigating agency has attached properties include Gurugram, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Palwal, Meerut and Bahadurgarh. In total, the authorities have seized more than 340 plots. These attached properties also include many lands which were part of various residential and commercial projects, but have now come into government possession.
Serious allegations of leaving the construction work incomplete and misappropriation of funds after collecting crores of rupees from thousands of buyers in the name of the project.
The biggest allegation against the builder group is that it collected crores of rupees from thousands of home buyers by making tempting promises, but neither handed over the flats to them on time as promised nor completed the construction work of the projects. The investigation also revealed that instead of using the hard-earned money collected from the buyers to complete the project, it was allegedly diverted and misused elsewhere.
Thousands of investors are forced to face financial crisis and mental stress due to projects stuck for the last 12 to 19 years.
The seriousness of this matter can be gauged from the fact that some of the projects of this builder were launched 12 to 19 years ago. Despite such a long time having passed, neither the flats were ready nor any concrete development work was done on the plot. Thousands of investors and buyers hoping to get a home are feeling cheated today and are stuck in a huge financial crisis.
The scope of investigation increased in the case of total fraud of more than Rs 1075 crore, further attachment action may be taken on more properties.
The case was registered against the builder group and its directors on the basis of complaints from around 4477 investors. According to the allegations, a total amount of more than Rs 1075 crore was taken from investors. The investigating officers have clarified that the action has not stopped yet and the investigation is ongoing. If more hidden assets are detected during the investigation, they will also be attached in the next phase. This strict action has now raised the hope among the buyers who have been affected that they may get some relief or compensation in the future through seized properties.
