A 44-year-old man from Rajkot district has taken legal action against a group of eight builders and their associates, accusing them of large-scale cheating and fraud in the sale of residential houses. The complaint, lodged at the Morbi taluka police station, highlights a growing concern over unfulfilled promises and lack of basic civic amenities in newly developed housing societies.
The Core Allegations and Accused Parties
The complainant, Vinod Parmar, a resident of Mansadham Society in Pipli village, Morbi taluka, has named eight individuals in his First Information Report (FIR). The accused are Manish Kalariya, Chintan Gami, Mihirsinh Jadeja, Rajdeep Gami, Jagdish Aerwadiya, Ankit Nesdiya, Pravin Gami, and Kishor Shersia. The case has been registered under the stringent IPC Sections 420 (cheating) and 114 (abettor present when offence is committed).
According to the FIR, the builders were responsible for constructing houses across four societies: Mansadham Society, Mansadham 2, Gokuldham Society, and Trilokdham Society. While Mansadham Society alone has 45 houses, the combined strength of all four projects is approximately 300 houses, indicating the scale of the alleged malpractice affecting numerous families.
Broken Promises and Missing Amenities
Vinod Parmar's grievance stems from a transaction dated November 9, 2020, when he purchased a house for Rs 15.21 lakh. He states that at the time of the sale, the builders made firm commitments to provide essential amenities to all residents. These promised facilities included a reliable water supply, properly constructed internal roads, common plots, and other basic civic infrastructure.
However, several years after the execution of the sale documents, these crucial facilities remain non-existent. Parmar alleges that this deliberate failure to deliver on promises, despite repeated assurances, amounts to criminal cheating. The absence of these amenities has severely impacted the quality of life for the hundreds of families residing in these societies.
Document Discrepancy and Official Hurdles
The situation worsened when residents, seeking a resolution, approached the Pipli village panchayat. To their shock, they discovered a major legal and administrative flaw: the land documents for the societies had not been mutated in the official village revenue records. This lack of proper mutation essentially means the sales are not officially recognized in government records, creating a cloud over the ownership rights of the homeowners.
Due to this critical discrepancy, the village panchayat informed the residents that it was unable to extend any civic amenities at the village level. This left the homeowners in a dire situation, caught between unresponsive builders and an incapacitated local administration.
The complainant further detailed the builders' alleged high-handed behavior. He claimed that despite numerous representations and appeals from the society members, the accused neither provided copies of relevant legal documents nor addressed the pressing complaints regarding electricity and water supply. More alarmingly, Parmar alleged that the builders resorted to threats, claiming they had significant influence and that no action could be taken against them, thereby intimidating the residents.
This case from Morbi taluka sheds light on the vulnerabilities faced by homebuyers in Gujarat's real estate market and underscores the importance of due diligence and proper documentation in property transactions.
