Builder misused Rs 10 crore maintenance deposit, claim Fresco residents

GURUGRAM; Residents of Fresco in Sector 50’s Nirvana Country approached director of town and country planning T L Satya Prakash on Monday and alleged irregularities on part of the the builders — Unitech and Pioneer Land & Infrastructure. They claimed that the builders misused the interest-free maintenance security (IFMS) deposit, amounting to Rs 10 crore, collected from the buyers eight years ago.
The basis of these allegations are the bank documents submitted by Unitech at the SDM’s office and accessed by the residents.

“Two months ago, we had approached SDM Bharat Bhushan highlighting our complaints against Unitech,” said Nilesh Tandon, president RWA, Fresco Towers. “We told him that services in Fresco were suffering because of the lackadaisical attitude of the builder. Following our complaint, the SDM had asked Unitech to file bank/account statements,” Tandon added.

The residents were present in the SDM’s office when the builder submitted the documents. Bhushan had then asked both the parties to sort out their issues amicably. “We checked the documents and realized that out of the Rs 10 crore, just a faction was utilised for the upkeep of the colony,” Tandon said.

At the time of allotment, all allotees paid Rs 75/sq ft as IFMS and Rs 25/sq ft as façade painting changes. “When we checked the bank statement, we saw many entries where money, originally meant for Fresco, was spent elsewhere. We raised this issue with Unitech representatives, who told us to email them our queries. Till date we are awaiting their response,” Tandon claimed.

SDM Bharat Bushan told TOI that Unitech had produced the documents. “As individuals, they (builder) have full right to privacy. If residents have seen some irregularities, it is a matter between them and the builder. Government is not involved anywhere.”

TOI repeatedly attempted to contact the builder, but the queries did not elicit any response.