Shahberi residents serve notice to finance firm that gave loans

Two residents of Shahberi village have served legal notices to a housing finance firm for approving a loan for an illegally constructed residential building.

Abhinav Khare, a resident of Siddharth Apartments 1, and Nupur Vadera, resident of JP Heights have each sent notices to GIC Housing Finance Limited for approving a loan for a flat in a building which has allegedly been constructed illegally.

Vadera has registered her complaint with the real estate regulatory authority (RERA) as well. RERA has set December 3 as the hearing date. “On August 22, we had registered our complaint with RERA and we got a response from it the same day. They issued a notice to the builder to appear before RERA in Agra on December 3. We just want our money refunded. Why should buyers have to face trouble because of the builder’s illegal acts,” said Vadera. Khare is also in the process of registering his complaint with Rera. “I have sent a legal notice to the housing finance firm because they are equally responsible for fooling innocent buyers. Finance firms need to verify the project credibility before approving loans. I am also going to approach RERA against our builder,” said Khare.

Panic had struck residents of Shahberi village after a six-storey building was sealed and three others nearby were evacuated following a collapse threat on July 21. The action was a fallout of the twin building collapse in Shahberi on July 17. The Greater Noida authority had sealed JP Heights Builders and Developers Private Limited constructed by JP Associates. The officials were informed that the building had tilted due to weak pillars. The building has six floors, including stilt parking on the ground floor. There are 24 flats in the building, of which one was occupied.

Around 35 families living in three buildings close to the tilted one were asked to vacate their houses to avoid mishaps. Khare’s building, Siddharth Apartments 1, was among the vacated buildings. “We are communicating with Vadera after receiving her notice. It’s a legal matter so we can’t comment. I am not aware about Abhinav Khare’s notice but we will look into it,” said Saurabh Kumar, branch manager, GIC Housing Finance Limited.

The finance firm was suggested by the builder to the buyers. “We were asked by the builder to take a loan from GIC and it was approved smoothly. Replying to my notice, GIC said they have nothing to do with the issue and that it is between the buyer and the builder,” added Vadera. RERA has now asked representatives of JP Heights to be present during the hearing. When contacted, Amit Bhutani, JP Heights, refused comment.

First Published: Sep 20, 2018 02:32 IST