NEW DELHI: On Tuesday, the Supreme Court permitted the CBI to initiate six additional regular cases concerning the fraudulent connections between banks and developers, which have deceived homebuyers in real estate projects across Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Mohali, and Prayagraj.
A bench consisting of Justices Surya Kant, Ujjal Bhuyan, and N Kotiswar Singh granted the CBI the authority to proceed legally after Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, representing the agency, indicated that the preliminary inquiry into various builders, excluding Supertech Ltd, has been completed.
The court acknowledged the CBI’s assertion that a cognizable offense has emerged from the preliminary inquiry and thus allowed the agency to register regular cases and continue with its investigation.
Bhati stated the agency aims to register six regular cases to expedite the investigation and intends to conduct searches and seizures as needed.
The Supreme Court instructed Bhati to disclose certain sections of the sealed report to amicus curiae advocate Rajiv Jain.
Previously, on July 22, the court had authorized the registration of 22 cases to investigate the fraudulent relationship between banks and developers regarding homebuyer deceits in the Delhi-NCR, granting the CBI six weeks to finalize inquiries for projects beyond the NCR.
These 22 cases involve builders operating in the NCR and the respective development authorities in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
According to the subvention scheme, banks directly transfer sanctioned funds to builders’ accounts, who must then pay EMIs until they hand over the flats to homebuyers.
When builders began defaulting on EMIs as per the tripartite agreement, banks subsequently sought these payments from homebuyers.
The Supreme Court mentioned that the CBI’s seventh preliminary inquiry relates to builders outside the NCR in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Mohali, and Prayagraj, which is still ongoing.
This case is part of a series of petitions from over 1,200 homebuyers who, having booked flats under subvention plans in various NCR housing projects, are claiming they are being coerced by banks to pay EMIs without having received possession of their flats.
On March 29, the Court authorized the CBI to initiate five preliminary inquiries into builders and projects in Noida, Greater Noida, Gurugram, Yamuna Expressway, and Ghaziabad, including one against Supertech Ltd, which is facing appeals from 799 homebuyers regarding multiple projects.
On July 22, the Court reviewed a sealed cover report from the CBI, which indicated that after the preliminary inquiries, 22 regular cases needed to be filed for further investigation.
On April 29, the Court directed the CBI to start seven preliminary inquiries against builders in the NCR, including Supertech Limited.
Expressing discontent over the collusion among officials from development authorities, banks, and builders to defraud homebuyers, the Court identified a prima facie connection between prominent banks and builders in various regions, including Noida and Gurugram.
The amicus curiae referred to Supertech Ltd as the “main culprit” in defrauding homebuyers, highlighting that Corporation Bank had lent over Rs 2,700 crore to builders via subvention schemes.
The report by the amicus curiae revealed that Supertech Ltd obtained a total of Rs 5,157.86 crore in loans since 1998.
