Amrapali buyers lash out at Noida authority, Yogi government

Buyers also raised suspicions on the three directors who gave their passports to district magistrate BN Singh

Homebuyers in Amrapali projects in Gautam Budh Nagar who are on a hunger strike accused the Noida authority, the district administration and the state government of ignoring helpless homebuyers. The buyers are staging a sit-in outside the corporate office of Amrapali Group.

Hmebuyers are on a hunger strike. (Virendra Singh Gosain/HT PHOTO)

Buyers also raised suspicions on the three directors who gave their passports to district magistrate (DM), BN Singh. Amrapali Group’s chairman-cum-managing director, Anil Kumar Sharma, directors Ajay Kumar and Shiv Priya, submitted their passport to the DM on Sunday.

“The three of them handed over their passports to the district administration but we don’t trust the DM, who is responsible for the whole district and its citizens. He hasn’t even bothered to meet us. We have met the DM but he even refused to register our complaint and directed us to take it up with the authority,” said Hitesh Nakhasi, a homebuyer in Dream Valley project said.

However, the DM said his top priority is to safeguard buyers’ interests. “This is a sensitive issue and we will act as per the law. Buyers had met me but the Noida authority is the right agency for discussing the issue. Wherever my role is required, I am always there to address the issues,” said Singh.

“The act of submitting the passports is an eyewash. They just want to fool us with the help of people in power. The DM has to give us an assurance that the trio doesn’t have any other passport. No official or politician has shown interest in even meeting us. Around 60,000 homebuyers are in trouble but the Yogi government is not bothered to take any decision to benefit us,” said Rajesh Malhotra, a buyer.

Buyers are staging the protest in turns and said they are prepared for a long fight. Two homebuyers, Vikas Jain and Kaushal Singh of the Amrapali Dream Valley housing project, started the hunger strike outside the builders’ corporate office in Sector 62.

“We will keep protesting till the authority doesn’t fulfil its promise. We have taken loans from banks to buy a house and have been left struggling for our rights. The government, politicians and bureaucrats are responsible for allowing such builders to dupe innocent people,” said Kaushal Singh.

The Amrapali Group had launched Amrapali Dream Valley project in 2009 with 47 towers in Sector Tech Zone-4. Of 12,000 dwelling units, around 8,000 flats have already been sold but the builder has completed only 40% of the construction work.

Homebuyers claimed that they have already paid almost 80% of the total flat cost, but the builder is yet to finish even 60% construction on site.