The developer of Shivalik Homes has been booked for fraud for allegedly selling the same flat to different persons.
An FIR was lodged against the developer under sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 468 (whoever commits forgery, intending that the document or electronic record forged shall be used for the purpose of cheating) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) following an order from the Allahabad high court. A buyer, Poonam, had moved court, alleging that the builder had sold the same flats to different persons.
Poonam and her mother, Rekha, had bought a flat in Shivalik Homes in 2019. “We bought it for Rs 35 lakh and were also given a no dues certificate from the society. Once we had started living in the flat, PNB Housing sent us a notice that the flat we had bought was also registered in the name of one Jagdish Joshi in 2016. Joshi had taken a loan from the bank and had stopped paying his installments,” Poonam said.
Poonam alleged that when they went to the police station to lodge a complaint, the police dilly dallied on registering an FIR against the developer.
“A few days later, the bank told us that we have to vacate the flat because it was yet to receive the installments for long. We were worried because the cops were also not cooperating with us. So, we went to the Allahabad high court and filed a petition against the builder. Following the court order, an FIR was lodged at Surajpur police station on January 27,” Poonam alleged.
Officers at the Surajpur police station said they had already initiated an investigation and action would be initiated against the builder.
Not just Poonam, a few other residents have raised similar allegations against the developer. Among them is Sundar Singh, who has also approached the police.
“Almost everyone in this society have cleared their payments to the builder and are paying EMIs. Many of us fear that the builder might have done the same thing to others as well since the registries of our flats are due. So, we have written to the developer, seeking an undertaking to the respective owners that the flats had been sold to them and not to anybody else,” said Rupesh Singh, another resident.
The flat owners have decided to stop paying maintenance fees from February 1 if the builder does not issue the undertaking by then.
Repeated calls to the developer’s officer for a comment on the FIR went unanswered.
