Builder held for duping flat buyers in Ghaziabad of ₹11 cr

The accused, identified as Rajkumar Jain, is a habitual cheat previously involved in at least 30 cases of cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy registered at the Delhi Police economic offences wing (EOW) and eight different police stations in Ghaziabad, EOW officials privy to the information said

A 57-year-old builder was arrested for allegedly duping at least 51 flat buyers to the tune of nearly ₹11 crore in the name of providing them flats in a housing society in Raj Nagar Extension near Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad.

At the time of booking the flats in 2012, the investors were promised full possession in three years. (Picture for representation)

The accused, identified as Rajkumar Jain, is a habitual cheat previously involved in at least 30 cases of cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy registered at the Delhi Police economic offences wing (EOW) and eight different police stations in Ghaziabad, EOW officials privy to the information said.

“Rajkumar was operating two real estate companies. His relatives, Vijayanta Jain, Prateek Jain and Akshay Jain, also named in the case registered in 2018, are absconding. So far, 51 complainants have approached the EOW with their complaints. The number is expected to increase,” said deputy commissioner of police (EOW) MI Haider.

According to police, the complainants alleged that the directors of Jain’s company with a registered office in Delhi’s Vivek Vihar, had induced the victims into booking flats in its proposed housing project in Raj Nagar Extension.

At the time of booking the flats in 2012, the investors were promised full possession in three years. After multiple delays, the company proposed to pay the EMIs of the loans till the construction is complete.

“However, the project is incomplete till date and the company stopped paying the EMIs to the banks. Several complainants alleged that though loans were sanctioned on their applications and without their knowledge, and loan amount was disbursed to the builder by forging their signatures on several documents,” the DCP said, adding that a case was registered in 2018 on the complaints.

During the investigation, he said, the probe team sent a notice to the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) and officials concerned, such as district collector, sub-registrar, requesting them to allow no further transfer or creation of a third party right since the land for the project was used for cheating investors.

The GDA replied that the project was given construction permit only in December 2015, and thereafter it still required permissions from fire and environment departments and the municipal corporation. This, even as complainants alleged that the company collected funds from investors since 2012, much before the project was sanctioned.

“It was also found that the project’s construction stopped in 2015 and its site has been sealed by the GDA for violations of the conditions of the licence. After collecting sufficient evidence, Rajkumar was arrested on Monday,” added the DCP.