'Biggest liar': SC orders seizure and sale of 28 Amrapali properties

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday called the Amrapali Group and its promoters “the worst kind of cheater” and “biggest liar” and ordered the attachment and sale of all its properties created out of homebuyers' money.Though the group admitted before the Supreme Court that it had diverted Rs 3000 crore of homebuyers' money, it failed to satisfy the top court regarding the details of the money trail.The group diverted homebuyers' money for creating other properties including five-star hotel in Greater Noida, malls, resorts, hospital, setting up FMCG factory and buying plots in different parts of the country. It claimed to have invested Rs 411 crore in those 28 properties which at present are worth of Rs 964 crore. The diversion of investment made by 46,000 homebuyers in Amrapali’s various projects lead to financial crisis and the group was left with no money to complete the projects and left the buyers in the lurch.Taking note of the voluminous affidavit of the group, which runs into hundreds of pages, a bench of Justices Arun Mishra and UU Lalit expressed dissatisfaction and said that the group failed to give the money trail of diversion of funds and the people who were beneficiaries of the transaction.It also raised question on why the company revealed diversion of fund only up to March 2015 while investments made in construction of housing projects and other details were up to 2018.“We are not getting any idea on how the money was transferred and whether it was approved by Board of Directors,” the bench said and questioned the veracity of financial statements of the group which were placed before it.SC-appointed forensic auditors Ravi Bhatia and Pawan Kumar Aggarwal, who were entrusted with the task of probing the financial irregularities of the group, also expressed surprise over the documents placed by the group and said that they are seeing such documents for the first time in their professional life and not a single figure given by the group matched with the bank statements.Aggarwal told the bench that as per the documents, the promoters did not invest even one rupee in the company but the vast empire was created out of homebuyers' money.The court asked the group to disclose the name of the person who had prepared the documents so that he could be liable for action if it proved to be false. “First tell me the name of the person who is responsible for the document. We want to examine him right now,” the bench said.The group, however, preferred to remain silent and did not disclose the name but later on told the court that five persons, including two Chartered accountants, had prepared the report and furnished their names.“You are in trouble now. Enough is enough. We would not spare you. You are manufacturing the data,” the bench said and asked the group to hand over all the remaining documents to forensic auditor within 24 hours.After senior advocate Geeta Luthra said that facilities areas in various housing projects could be sold to raise the money, the bench enraged and said, “You are the worst kind of cheater in the world. Facility area given in housing projects are not company’s charity for homebuyers. How can you say that it be sold first.”“Your affidavit is false. You are the biggest liar,” it said and directed attachment of 28 properties which also includes group’s five corporate office, Udaipur resort, Amrapali power and cement plot, Movie hall in Meerut, Indore Township, Golf link city villa etc.The real estate giant, which is involved in construction of various housing projects which includes 170 towers in Noida and Greater Noida, said that Rs 2996 crore diversion of homebuyers' money was diverted to other companies up to March 2015. The group said that it’s 15 companies received Rs 11573 crore from homebuyers' and it raised additional Rs 4040 crore from financial institutions and Foreign Direct Investment. It claimed to have invested Rs 10300 cr in those housing projects.