HC orders dismantling of Noida housing project

In a development that smacks of Mumbai's infamous Adarsh housing scam, the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered the demolition of two towers being ''illegally'' developed in Noida near Delhi by Supertech Ltd.

The towers were being constructed in Sector-93-A, each 40 storeys high. The court has ordered that the demolition be carried out within four months.

Construction at the two towers (T-16 and T-17) is complete till the 21st and 17th storeys. Supertech has sold nearly 600 flats in the towers, but there is no occupancy yet.

The high court directed the developer to bear the cost of demolition. Besides, the developer has been ordered to refund the buyers' money, along with 14 per cent compound interest, within three months.

Further, the court directed that the officials of the Noida Authority, who gave the sanction for the construction, be identified and prosecuted against under the provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Industrial Development Area Act 1976 and UP Apartments Act, 2010.

The high court order came on a petition filed by Emerald Court Owner residents Welfare Association. While passing the order, the bench of Justices V K Shukla and Suneet Kumar rejected the developers' plea that a lot of expenses had been incurred in construction and several people had bought those flats.

''It has repeatedly come to the notice that builders, by joining hands with the officers of the development authorities, openly flout every conceivable rule, including building regulations. The builder is always under the impression that once the frame of the building is illegally constructed, the court can be persuaded to take a sympathetic view and permit the construction even though in total breach of legal provisions,'' the bench said.

The court added that the builders are taking advantage of the situation, in which land prices are skyrocketing and there is scarcity of land for group housing.

''Taking advantage of the situation, the builder lobby is exploiting people's needs by setting up illegal construction and the unfortunate part of this is that it has active assistance of the officers of the development authority; the time has come when everyone should realise that rule of law is not a purchasable commodity and illegalities will not be tolerated merely because the builder has taken protection against the sanction which admittedly is illegal and in violation of building regulations,'' the court said.

Reports say hundreds of thousands of flat buyers in Noida Extension are concerned over the development, as they fear similar orders may come for Noida Extension builders too.

All these builders have got their revised building plan approved under a purchasable FAR scheme of the local development authority without getting the consent of allottees.

The Supertech Emerald court project was launched in 2005, and buyers who have paid 85-90 per cent of the of flat's price are more than a little worried about the fate of their major investment.