NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court issued a notice to police on Monday regarding a petition filed by real estate mogul Gopal Ansal, who seeks to quash an FIR against him related to a cheating case stemming from the Uphaar fire tragedy.
The FIR was prompted by a complaint from a buyer of land within a project managed by Ansal Buildwell Limited. Justice Amit Mahajan requested a status report from Delhi Police, with the hearing set for September 10.
The High Court further instructed the state not to take coercive actions against the petitioner until the next hearing date. A notice has also been issued to the complainant following the submission of amended memos by the parties involved.
Gopal Ansal’s petition aims to dismiss the FIR registered on February 11, 2025, at Barakhamba Road Police Station, citing offenses under Sections 420, 406, and 120B of the Indian Penal Code.
The FIR arose from claims made by Manoj Anand, who alleges that he paid Rs 3,56,000 for land in a project developed by Ansal Buildwell Limited, of which Ansal was a director. The complainant has stated that no property was delivered to him.
Advocate Sushil Kumar Gupta, representing Ansal, argued that the project never materialized as the Jaipur Development Authority denied permission to convert the land’s status.
He also mentioned multiple attempts to reach out to the complainant for a refund, yet they went unanswered, resulting in a complaint raised almost two decades later.
Observing this, the High Court remarked, “Prima facie, this Court has been unable to figure out why such an FIR was registered by the police after two decades.”
It was also noted that the accused company had expressed a willingness to refund the full amount with reasonable interest to the complainant. To demonstrate goodwill, Ansal’s counsel proposed that Rs 10,00,000 be deposited by Anand with the Registrar General of this Court within four weeks.
Gopal Ansal is already serving a seven-year sentence for tampering with evidence in the 1997 Uphaar cinema fire case, which resulted in 59 fatalities.
In November 2021, a Delhi court imposed this sentence on real estate magnates Sushil and Gopal Ansal connected to the Uphaar cinema fire, which occurred during a screening of the Hindi film Border on June 13, 1997.
