Mumbai: Malad residents in redevelopment battle get builder arrested

Sandeep Sheth

Residents of a Malad building, locked in a redevelopment nightmare for the last couple of years, have managed to get their builder arrested on charges of cheating. The Malad police arrested developer Sandeep Sheth yesterday, upon the Bombay High Court's orders. He is currently in police custody for a day.

He and his partners in KT Group - Dhairya Sheth and Dhruv Sheth - were supposed to redevelop Liberty Garden Co-operative Society in Malad, but they failed to complete the project in the given period and also neglected to pay the society members the promised compensation.

Cops refuse at first
According to Malad police sources, the society members approached the high court and filed an arbitration petition, as well as a complaint with the local police. However, the cops refused to register a case against the developer, labelling it a civil case. The court then ordered the Malad police to explain how it this was a civil case. The officer eventually registered an FIR under Sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC, along with Sections 6, 8, 13 and 14 of the Maharashtra Ownership of Flats Act (MOFA), 1963.

No home or money
The society was constructed in 1968, and was vacated and handed over to Sheth for redevelopment on September 30, 2014. On January 21, 2015, the commencement certificate was issued, and the developer agreed to complete the project in 28 months.

This period came to an end in 2016, but to this day, the resident have not been given their homes back. He also neglected to pay the resident the agreed compensation while they lived outside the society.

In 2017, the society members approached the high court with the arbitration petition, and the builder started paying them again, but only for a while. He soon stopped the payments again.

"This time, we filed a contempt application in court, and the judge came down heavily and asked the police lodge an FIR. Many of us had paid the builder additional Rs 1.15 crore to get extra space, but he has not given us anything yet," said a resident. They also alleged that he owes the society Rs 25 lakh in fines for his failure tom complete on time. Another society member added that the developer not even paid the BMC the Landed Unit Cost and property taxes, amounting to more than Rs 23 lakh. "He made big promises to the society, but they turned out to be false," said another society member.

Copspeak
"We arrested Sheth on Sunday morning and produced him before the magistrate court. He has been remanded to police custody for a day. We are in search of the other accused," said an officer from Malad police station.

Also Read: Mumbai: Jailed Builder And Family Booked For Flat-Out Big Fraud In Mira Road

Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news, crime news, current affairs, and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates