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Court orders builder to deposit Rs 35 million

In a significant order, the Delhi high court has directed a builder to deposit Rs 35 million with it to safeguard the interests of investors.

A division bench comprising Justice Y K Sabharwal and Justice K S Gupta directed the builders of the controversial Chyavan Rishi Apartments to deposit the money within a fortnight.

Senior counsel O P Sharma, appearing on behalf of people who have invested in the apartment block, said the builders had collected more than Rs 1 billion from investors and urged the bench to ensure that the money is not lost. "What will happen to the investors if the builders run away with all the money?" he asked.

A report was also submitted to the court in a sealed cover by forensic experts on the authenticity of the documents submitted by the builders to substantiate their claim on the large tract of land.

The court, however, directed the experts to supply copies of the report to all parties to the dispute as there is nothing in it that demands secrecy.

The building, in which several politicians are also reported to have bought apartments, is said to have come up on government land in Model Town locality of north Delhi.

A house committee constituted by the speaker of the Delhi assembly found gross violations of the master plan for the capital and building by-laws. The committee said this could not have been done without the connivance of officials of various local agencies.

Even as the court was looking into the authenticity of the documents submitted by the builders to substantiate their claim on the land, the house committee found evidence indicating that the land had never been sold to the person from whose heirs the builders claim to have bought it.

The committee also found evidence of the role played by the sub-registrar, Kashmiri Gate, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, and the Delhi Development Authority in allowing the unauthorised building to come up on government land. It accused the sub-registrar of being a party to the forgery and helping to falsify documents.

It also found that MCD officials had committed grave lapses in giving sanction to the building plans without regard for the by-laws.

The zonal development plan had laid down that the land be used for building a primary school.

UNI

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