Construction to go on at Jaypee Infratech projects, says IRP Anuj Jain

More perturbed are buyers, who paid between Rs 20 lakh and Rs one crore for flats and later stopped payment as they lost faith in the projects. They are not sure whether they will get refund if they opt out.

The National Company Law Tribunal-appointed interim resolution professional (IRP) Anuj Jain on Wednesday said that the construction at two Jaypee housing projects — Aman and Wish Town — will continue and he will obtain occupancy certificates from the Noida authority for other towers as and when they are completed.

Jaypee Wish Town at Sector 128, Noida. (Virendra Singh Gosain/HT PHOTO)

About 30,000 homebuyers were left in a lurch on August 9 after NCLT admitted an insolvency plea filed by IDBI Bank against Jaypee Infratech, which failed to repay over Rs 526 crore loan to the bank.

Jain took over control of Jaypee Infratech with an aim to revive the housing project but the biggest concern facing the buyers who have been investing since 2007 is whether they will be able to get their flats. The buyers also filed a plaint in Supreme Court on August 23 seeking justice.

“Buyers should understand that construction at all Jaypee Infratech housing projects will continue as usual. Contractors are working at the site. As and when a tower or more towers will be ready, I will begin the process of getting occupancy certificates from the Noida authority chief executive officer and offer possession or registry to buyers,” said Jain.

Buyers are jittery as they do not know if Jaypee Infratech has enough funds to pay contractors.

“As of now, there is no payment issue. I will be able to comment on whether the company has adequate funds to finish the project or not after a month,” said Jain.

More perturbed are buyers, who paid between Rs 20 lakh and Rs one crore for flats and later stopped payment as they lost faith in the projects. They are not sure whether they will get refund if they opt out.

“I will process their application as per the agreement they signed with Jaypee Infratech at the time of purchase. I will go by the rulebook,” said Jain.

But there are many unanswered questions. Why can’t Jaypee Infratech pay Rs 526 crore small to IDBI and escape insolvency proceedings when it has got 1,000 hectares of prime land along the 165-km Yamuna Expressway with it? Will the IRP sell Jaypee Infratech assets to revive the company? How will Jaypee deliver flats to buyers and finish the projects? These are the questions that have been bothering over 30,000 Jaypee homebuyers in the last two weeks.

“As of now, there is no decision on selling Jaypee Infratech’s assets. The resolution report that will take around six months will have options pertaining to revival of the company and roadmap for delivery of the project,” said Jain.

Jain was non-committal on the Yamuna Expressway authority chief executive officer Arun Vir Singh’s announcement that about 3,000 buyers in Jaypee’s scrapped projects will get refund by October 2017.

“I have made no such commitment to CEO Arun Vir Singh on refund. Refund cannot happen before the resolution report that will take six to nine months to be completed,” said Jain.