new delhi: The Supreme Court has allowed the CBI to register 22 cases into an alleged multi-crore housing scam in the National Capital Region (NCR).
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh permitted the CBI to register FIRs in cases involving serious financial irregularities in residential projects across Noida, Greater Noida, Gurugram, and Ghaziabad. At the centre of the probe is the manipulation of a home loan subvention scheme that left thousands of homebuyers indebted without any homes to show for it.
Under the scheme, banks lent directly to developers, who were supposed to pay EMIs until handing over possession. When some developers defaulted, the liability was shifted to buyers, many of whom neither saw progress on their homes nor took possession. Over 1,200 aggrieved buyers have approached the apex court, alleging fraud and harassment.
The court acknowledged the CBI’s “painstaking efforts,” including examination of over 1,000 witnesses, site visits to 58 projects, and a detailed sealed report. The court asked the agency to fast-track the investigation and also conclude additional probes in Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Mohali, and Prayagraj within six weeks.
The bench took serious note of findings by court-appointed amicus curiae Rajiv Jain, whose report highlighted systemic failures on the part of development authorities and lax regulatory oversight by entities such as the RERA.
One of the strongest revelations in the case was the role played by Supertech Ltd., which the bench recognised as the “primary offender” in some of the fraudulent cases. The company had borrowed more than Rs 5,157 crore through a number of financial institutions since 1998, says the amicus report. Of this, Rs 2,700 crore was said to have come through subvention loans brokered by Corporation Bank alone.
While backing genuine homebuyers, the court warned petitioners allegedly misusing litigation to delay possession, advising them to pursue alternate legal remedies.
The matter is listed for the next hearing within two weeks.