Amrapali chairman, two directors arrested on Supreme Court order

Delhi Police on Thursday arrested real estate company Amrapali’s chairman and managing director, Anil Sharma, and two other directors, Shiv Priya and Ajay Kumar, for custodial interrogation on an order by the Supreme Court in connection with cheating cases filed by homebuyers.

Delhi Police on Thursday arrested real estate company Amrapali’s chairman and managing director, Anil Sharma, and two other directors, Shiv Priya and Ajay Kumar, for custodial interrogation on an order by the Supreme Court in connection with cheating cases filed by homebuyers.

Homebuyers have been protesting against the Amrapali group for delays in handing over flats. (HT File Photo)

The arrest of the Amrapali directors was ordered on the basis of an application filed by the economic offences wing of the Delhi Police, which sought the apex court’s permission to investigate the three executives.

“We permit you not just custodial interrogation but also the arrest of the three. Arrest them forthwith. We make it clear that the Delhi Police is free to arrest/take into custody any or all the other directors of Amrapali group of companies,” a bench of Justice Arun Mishra and Justice UU Lalit said.

The three have, since last October, been in the custody of Uttar Pradesh Police and been housed in a Noida hotel on a directive by the Supreme Court. Sharma, Priya and Kumar were accused of not cooperating with forensic auditors examining financial transaction by the company and its directors. The court had said that they be kept under police surveillance in a hotel till all investigations against the company was completed.

Following this, a first information report (FIR) was registered against the real estate company and its directors.

The court also widened the scope of the probe against the Amrapali group and its directors, saying: “Let Delhi Police look into the entire gamut of all projects for cheating homebuyers.”

The court also came down heavily on the other directors of Amrapali group for diversion of money collected from homebuyers and ordered attachment of 37 properties, including the residence of the Amrapali CMD in Maharani Bagh in south Delhi.

The court also issued notices and directed 200 people and companies who have had monetary transactions with Amrapali group to appear before the forensic auditors appointed by the court.

This direction follows a complaint by the two forensic auditors to the top court that some individuals and companies who have had transactions with the real estate company were not co-operating with them.

Asking the forensic auditors to wrap up their report quickly, the court ordered them to finalise their report on diversion of homebuyers’ money by Amrapali by March 22.