No bail for Unitech MD, SC says ‘have to equate tears of 16,300 with one’

The apex court clarified that the company will have to either give possession of flats to the buyers or refund them, failing which its properties will be auctioned to raise money to compensate the parties. (File photo)

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to grant relief to Unitech managing director Sanjay Chandra saying it has to “equate” the tears of thousands of home buyers, who had been denied possession of flats they booked, with that of one person.

“Jurisprudence is one thing. But here we have to equate the tears of 16,300 people and one person,” a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra said when senior counsel Salman Khurshid, appearing for Chandra, raised the law surrounding bail. Chandra, who was arrested in April this year, had moved the court seeking interim bail.

The apex court clarified that the company will have to either give possession of flats to the buyers or refund them, failing which its properties will be auctioned to raise money to compensate the parties.

Meanwhile, the amicus curiae in the case, advocate Pawan Shree Aggarwal, who had been tasked to prepare a chart explaining the assets and liabilities of the group and details of claims of the home buyers, informed the court that flats had been handed over to buyers in 13 of the 74 projects and that there were 16,300 buyers in the remaining 61 projects. The money involved in them amounted to Rs 7,816 crore, he added.

The bench, also comprising Justice Amitava Roy and Justice A M Khanwilkar, asked the 16,300 home buyers to give their options to the amicus curiae on whether they want possession or refund of money, and fixed the matter for October 30.

Advocate Aggarwal also told the court that as per its order, he had created a portal where the home buyers could upload their details to claim flats or refund from the company and that it will be active from Friday.

The bench, however, clarified that buyers who have been handed over possession of flats in the 13 projects should not upload their details on the website.