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Supertech Emerald Court demolition order in Noida: Key facts and timeline
The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the demolition of Supertech Ltd's twin 40-storey towers under construction in Noida in Uttar Pradesh within three months for violation of building norms.
In a setback to Supertech Ltd, the Supreme Court on Tuesday directed demolition of twin 40-storey towers of the realty major's Emerald Court project in Noida.
The top court said the case record is replete with instances which highlight the collusion between officers of the Noida Authority with Supertech Ltd and its management and involvement of the planning authority with the developer in violation of laws.
Here are the key facts about the project:
The soon to be demolished project involves two towers: Apex and Ceyane
The project is located in Noida's Sector 93A, along the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway
The project has 857 apartments, out of which 627 have been sold
Timeline of the case:
June 2005: Plan sought to build a towers each with nine floors and softs in total
December 2006: Plan modified to 15 towers with 11 floors each and 689 total flats. Supertech argued that these plans were governed by Noida building bylaws of 1996
November 2009: Plan revised to include two more towers - Apex and Ceyane - with 24 floors. Construction begins
March 2012: Total floors increased to 40 in the two towers. These were under 2010 Noida building regulations, Supertech argued
December 2012: Emerald Court Owners Residents Welfare Association approaches Allahabad high court claiming the towers violated UP Apartment Owners Act, 2010 that required sanction of homebuyers for changes in plan. They said the towers came up over an area marked as a garden in brochure. The Supreme Court was told the towers were built at less than the mandated 16 metre distance between them
April 2014: High court ordered demolition of the towers and refund to buyers with 14 per cent interest. It observed that officials of Noida Authority colluded with the builder to construct the towers; towers sealed
May 2014: Noida Authority and Supertech move Supreme Court claiming no norm was flouted. Homebuyers too move court seeking refund, regularisation of towers or order to shift them to another project
August 2021: Supreme Court slams Noida Authority for its "shocking" misuse of powers to sanction the two towers, upholds high court's demotion order
Supreme Court's directions
Demolition should be done in three months, paid for by Supertech
Flat owners of the two towers to get refund at 12 per cent interest in two months
₹2 crore to be paid to RWA within a month
The people behind the long legal battle
Senior citizens, including a retired DIG of the CISF, a former DRDO official and a deputy director general in Telecom Department, started the legal battle and led it to its conclusion.
UBS Teotia (79), S K Sharma (74), Ravi Bajaj (65) and M K Jain (59) formed a legal committee and moved court in 2009.
