Maria Sharapova to be named in FIR for endorsing fraudulent housing project
Maria Sharapova will be named in an FIR after she endorsed a luxury housing project that was scheduled to get completed by 2016 and never came to fruition
Maria Sharapova finds herself in legal hot water and will be named in an FIR after she lent her support to a fraudulent housing project in Gurugram, which never actually took off.
Sharapova, who was found endorsing the luxury housing project, had allegedly come down to India in 2013 to meet prospective buyers. The residential complex was named as “Ballet by Sharapova”.
However, the project that was scheduled to get completed by 2016 has failed miserably and never came to fruition, prompting one of the buyers to move court.
Gurugram-based Bhawana Agarwal, who had paid ₹53.03 lakh for the project, recently filed a complaint through her lawyer Piyush Singh in a Delhi court against Homestead Infrastructure Development, Homestead Infrastructure Maintenance, Homestead Arabic Homes.
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Agarwal has stated in court that the developers’ promise to include a tennis academy and commercial space for clothing and sportswear had lured her to the project.
The complainant further added that not only had the Russian tennis star endorsed the fraudulent project, in the eyes of the general public, she supported it as well and was thus part of a criminal conspiracy.
Chief magistrate Rajesh Malik passed the order following which the police must file an FIR, according to advocate Singh.
“If the averments of the complainant are to be believed, it shows that nothing has happened on the said project and alleged persons have no license or sanction for construction or development at the project, for which the complainant paid Rs 53.03 lakh.
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“If the alleged persons have no licence or sanction to raise the residential flats in the name of ‘Ace by Sharapova’, Sector 73, Gurgaon, and accepted Rs 53 lakh to book a flat of unit area of 2,500 sqft, then they have undoubtedly committed criminal offence.
“Once the court issues an order, the police has to register the FIR. Sharapova had come down to India two-three times in 2013 to meet prospective buyers.
More than 1,500 people have invested in this project but the project still has not seen the light of the day,” advocate Singh said to the Times of India.