GHAZIABAD: The GDA is set to take action against current and former officials who permitted a private developer to construct and sell 134 additional flats beyond the approved 400 units at Express Garden society in Indirapuram’s Vaibhav Khand back in 2005.
A GDA panel, established under the direction of the Allahabad High Court, is expected to present its findings to the Authority’s additional secretary later this week. The high court is scheduled to review the case in September.
Officials familiar with the committee’s recommendations noted that it has suggested filing an FIR against the architect, the developer, and the GDA officials who oversaw construction during the time the extra units were built.
A residents’ group from Express Garden filed a petition in the Allahabad High Court in May 2022, asserting that there had been no annual elections for the society since 2015, due to claims that the deed of declaration was flawed.
“During the hearings, we learned that the promoter had constructed a total of 534 units instead of the sanctioned 400,” said Vijay Rathi, a resident and one of the complainants.
In a ruling by Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal dated December 20, 2023, it was instructed that “the vice-chairman must initiate an inquiry against the subordinate staff responsible for monitoring the project that resulted in the additional 134 units within the originally sanctioned 400.” Last February, TOI reported that GDA’s internal investigation had focused on officials primarily from the enforcement wing who were in service between 2008 and 2012, with notices sent to several individuals.
Developer Pankaj Goyal expressed his lack of knowledge regarding any investigation by GDA. “We didn’t alter the covered area; we merely subdivided larger flats to create 134 additional units,” Goyal explained. “We are working to regularize the extra units in accordance with the Building Bylaws, 2016, and have sought necessary approvals from the state government, which will be presented in court.” The GDA had initially approved the layout for Express Garden in 2005, allowing for the construction of 400 flats on plot number 6 in Vaibhav Khand, with completion taking place between 2008 and 2012.
