Builder booked for abetting investor’s suicide
The builder, Bharat Navinchandra Gala – owner of Arihant builders, not only defaulted on the October 2023 deadline for giving possession of the flat, he also provided cheques to cover the cost of rental housing which bounced, plunging the man into deep financial crisis which forced him to take his own life on February 26, said police officials
Mumbai: The Malad police have booked a builder for allegedly abetting the suicide a 55-year-old man who had invested nearly ₹1 crore with the builder and was promised a flat in his under-construction project in Malad. The builder, Bharat Navinchandra Gala – owner of Arihant builders, not only defaulted on the October 2023 deadline for giving possession of the flat, he also provided cheques to cover the cost of rental housing which bounced, plunging the man into deep financial crisis which forced him to take his own life on February 26, said police officials.
According to the wife of the deceased, her husband was found hanging from a bamboo pole on February 26 in the building in Malad where he was promised a flat. Though the police registered a case of an accidental death initially, when family members opened the lock of the deceased’s mobile phone, they found an alleged suicide note in the ‘notes’ section, wherein he blamed Gala for his financial problems.
According to the deceased’s wife statement recorded by the police, a relative had introduced Gala to the deceased in 2014, after which they became good friends. In 2018, Gala urged the deceased to invest money in his construction business, while in 2019-20, the deceased sold his flat in Mira Road for ₹1 crore and invested the amount in the former’s business. As per the memorandum of understanding signed between the two parties at the time, the deceased was supposed to get a flat in the builder’s under-construction building in Malad, whereas a high court order designated October 31, 2023 as the date of possession, and directed Gala to pay the rent until then.
Gala registered a flat in the name of the deceased during the pandemic, reportedly because he was unable to pay the rent. “My husband used to visit the site every Sunday, but was upset over the lack of progress in construction work. When Gala failed to give possession of the flat within the deadline, he asked him to pay the ₹45,000 rent for the flat we were living in. Gala gave him some cheques, but they began bouncing,” the deceased’s wife told the police. Faced with a financial crisis, the deceased borrowed money to start a garment business, but suffered losses there too and was depressed, she further said.
A relative of the deceased claimed that nearly 40% of the work in the under-construction building was pending, due to which several flat owners had been inconvenienced. “The police registered an FIR against the builder under section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the Indian Penal Code on Saturday, only after we found the suicide note on the phone,” the relative said.
Gala, however, claimed that nearly 90% work on the building was complete and possession would be given within the next two months. He also claimed the deceased had warned contractors of losses if they worked with him. “He had to pay another ₹40 lakh including the GST amount, and I was not in contact with him since the past one-and-half years. The accusation against me is false,” he told HT.