Flats too small? FIR against Noida builder

Flats too small? FIR against Noida builder

The economic offences wing of the Delhi Police has registered an FIR against the owners and senior management of Prateek Group, following accusations from 20 homebuyers of Prateek Edifice in Sector 107, Noida, ToI reported on July 1.

According to the report (by Aditya Dev), the complaint alleges that the developers, including Prashant and Prateek Tiwari and senior managers Sunil Kumar Mittal and Anshuman Sharma, did a fraud involving over Rs 190 crore.

As per the complainants, the 423 flats sold in Prateek Edifice were 10-12% smaller than what they had been charged for. They claimed construction was also done beyond the sanctioned plan without their consent. Rajeev Goyal, one of the complainants, told ToI, "The flats delivered to us were significantly smaller in size than what was promised to us. An architect was appointed to carry out a survey after we approached the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) against the developer. They did not just give us smaller flats, but also carried out construction beyond the sanctioned plan without taking any consent from us."

The buyers further accused Prateek Group of collecting Rs 12.8 crore as one-time lease rent from flat owners, while the amount payable to the Noida Authority was only Rs 6.4 crore. It is alleged that the developer did not pay this amount to the Authority.

Additionally, the developer is said to have delayed the handover of flats. Rajeev Goyal mentioned that the flat he booked in April 2012, which was promised for December 2015, was handed over only in February 2019. Goyal also stated that he had paid 95% of the total cost by May 2016. "Eventually, we were handed possession after NCDRC asked the developer to hand over flats within three weeks. Many facilities and amenities promised to us were not delivered. There were a lot of pending work, defects and deficiencies in workmanship, construction, finishing, fittings, and fixtures in the flats," Goyal added.

The FIR also highlighted that Prateek Group collected over Rs 9 crore from flat owners as Interest-Free Maintenance Security (IFMS), but did not refund this amount to the association of owners despite notices from the Authority. According to the buyers, the developer also charged more for grid electricity, meter connection, WiFi, cooking gas security, and sewer connections.

Goyal elaborated further on the issues with charges, stating, "Though common prepaid electricity sub-meters were calibrated and energised in April 2019, developers started to recover fixed charges for grid and DG power with effect from January 2019. The builder also charged Rs 18.8 lakh towards purported water charge arrears."

The complainants also alleged that the company misused prepaid sub-meters installed in flats to illegally recover charges for water and electricity.

A spokesperson for Prateek Group responded to the allegations, saying that the developer had not yet received any communication from the police. "The flat owners who lodged the complaint have already been given possession of flats. Additionally, registration and possession of flats is over. Further action will be taken once we get all the information," the spokesperson added.

The case is currently under investigation, and the authorities are gathering more information. The homebuyers seek justice for the discrepancies in the property sizes, overcharged amounts, and delayed possession of their flats.

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