12 defaulter builders offices sealed in UP by Gautam Buddha Nagar administration
They owe 175 crore as dues and were guilty of ignoring RERA orders
For the first time good news that home buyers are celebrating. At least 5 different home buyers’ associations have sent me this news clip in the morning.
However, a closer look raises more questions than answers the concerns of the harassed home buyers. Buyers’ celebration is hence premature. These builders had anyway deserted their offices.
Builders like Ansal, Rudra, Antarkish, Elegante etc are already known defaulters with “I don’t care” attitude.
Track2Realty had only recently exposed Rudra Buildwell for deserting its group housing project Rudra Palace Heights at Greater Noida West. Around 1000 home buyers hard-earned money has been siphoned off and they have now taken the matter to NCDRC. After Track2Realty expose, builder promised the home buyers to get OC by 15 May, and this May 15th was no other year but 2025 itself. Will you get OC? Without the project being in habitable condition? It was builder’s bluff or over-confidence to manage the system and get OC?
I have a few questions here:
Why the district administration wakes up so late in its crackdown?
Why defaulter builders are given so much time to siphon off the buyers’ money
Why are builders given reminder after reminder in the wake of non-compliance of RERA orders or even daring to ignore RERA notice itself?
Doesn’t the slow-moving system emboldens these wilful defaulter builders?
Is the list of defaulter builders only limited to these 12 builders?
Why are defaulter builder (or one with delayed project) given approval for new project launches?
Greater Noida Authority alone, that is just one development authority, website shows 115 builders are defaulters. The list has last been updated in 2019. No need to say whether the number has reduced or added since then. This list includes Maha Ghotalebaaz (Super Corrupt) builders like Amrapali and Supertech. But there has been no urgency since then to prevent another defaulter to become as much a gigantic problem as these two.
We couldn’t get the updated defualter list of any government authorities. In 2023, Noida Authority claimed that out of a total 115 group housing projects, 68 are defaulters. And still the system moves so slow that only those buyers get justice who dare to get into lengthy & costly litigation up to the Supreme Court. Many of such buyers who buy a home post-retirement with all life’s savings never get to see their dream of one’s own home.
Despite government’s well-intentioned efforts to settle legacy issues of builders’ default with offer of amicable settlement, these defaulter builders have not honoured Amitabh Kant Committee offer.
Whom should the buyers go for speedy justice? If you ask builders’ industry body CREDAI you don’t get a feeling of talking to builders’ representative but a spiritual guru whose only intention is general well-being of humanity. One ex-CREDAI President was ridiculous enough to advise the journalists not to refer them as builders but developers. “Aap hamein aise builder nahin bol sakte.” “We are developers.” As if only the name change could change the realities of builders. Maybe he meant all builders should be referred as decorated technocrats. It’s a different matter that his own company was in the news later for all the wrong reasons and he ceased to be the face of builder’s lobby.
If Adalat (Court) has to answer every time, what is Shahshan (Governance) and Prashashan (administration) meant for. Are these builders bigger than the system now? Government officials privately admit that their hands are also tied. Many of these defaulter builders are expert in playing with the legalities with multiple cases ranging from RERA to NCDRC and NCLT. They are conscious of the realities of harassed home buyers who have limited resources to fight.
Shouldn’t these issues be taken as a priority by the leaders who seek votes of these home buyers? Shouldn’t there be a fast-track court to settle real estate disputes? Most importantly, shouldn’t there be forensic audit of each defaulter builder and instead of seizing his office, his personal wealth should be seized?
Most of such defaulter builders are classic case of rich promoters of sick companies. One such defaulter builder once retorted me, “Arre koi fansi thode hi na de dega?” (No one will hang me for such faults). Of course, even when the Supreme Court is upset with these builders, it once said, “We can’t give death penalty to builder for corruption.” And that sums up the reality which every builder knows and enjoys.
My last question: Will the home buyers question the vote seeking MLAs and MPs next time? Why should I vote for you if you can’t help us? You can’t ask? Well, you are a bonded voter (Bandhua Voter) for any of the political parties? Well, you deserve this builder exploitation my friend! The movie “Kranti” has a very good dialogue for you, “Kulhaadi mein agar lakdi ka zasta na hota, toh lakdi ke katne ka rashta na hota.” (Had there been no wood in the axe, that axe would not have cut the wood).
I have nothing more to say.
Ravi Sinha
#RaviTrack2Media
Ravi Sinha is a journalist with over two decades of cross-discipline media exposure. He is the CEO of real estate thinktank group Track2Realty. He has been writing extensively on the real estate sector for more than a decade now. Evaluation of real estate brand performance is his core domain expertise and he has immense insight into consumers’ psychograph. He has conceptualised Track2Realty BrandXReport as India’s 1st & only objective & non-paid brand rating journal that is industry-accepted benchmark of brand equity & ranking of the Indian real estate companies.
Track2Realty is an independent media group managed by a consortium of journalists. Starting as the first e-newspaper in the Indian real estate sector in 2011, the group has today evolved as a think-tank on the sector with specialized research reports and rating & ranking. We are editorially independent and free from commercial bias and/or influenced by investors or shareholders. Our editorial team has no clash of interest in practicing high quality journalism that is free, frank & fearless.
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