Maharashtra: Raigad homebuyers to get their dues soon

Home buyers awaiting compensation from N K Bhupeshbabu promoter of Enkay Garden are a step closer to receiving their pending dues The Panvel tehsildarrsquos office has recovered Rs 482 crore by auctioning the Navi Mumbai builderrsquos properties The developer however is planning to contest the recovery in the high court on grounds that it has been done in violation of rules and he was not given any notice for the sameMahaRERA had issued 99 warrants to recover Rs 222 crore from 38 projects as compensation to home buyers in Raigad district Of these the Panvel tehsildarrsquos office had recently announced an auction of various properties of N K Bhupeshbabu for recovery of around Rs 65 crore against 33 pending warrants in the name of the developerSpread around 25 acres the Enkay Garden has around 1000 flats of which the developer claims 650 have been 100 per cent complete and the remaining are 90 per cent ready ldquoThe project started in 2010 The project has been delayed due to many factors one of them is several changes in government especially the planning authority My priority is to complete the project and not refund the amountrdquo the developer said adding ldquoI will be challenging this recovery process in the high court on grounds that it was done without giving any notice for the samerdquoAlso Read Builders owe Mumbai homeowners Rs 336 crThe developer further told midday that a private NBFC had sanctioned Rs 30 crore and taken over his existing loan of Rs 15 crore ldquoThe NBFC didnrsquot disburse the further amount as promised This has caused more damage to the projectrdquo N K Bhupeshbabu addedMeanwhile a senior official attached to the regulatory body stated that the revenue department was expecting Rs 372 crore recovery from the auction process ldquoBut in reality the auction fetched nearly Rs 48 crorerdquo the official addedLast year in December MahaRERA Chairman Ajoy Mehta and other members of the authority collectively took the decision to appoint a retired additional collector to expedite and monitor recovery through execution of warrants Nearly four months after the appointment of the nodal officer the first auction process for recovery of dues from developers was successfully executed Now all eyes are on the other 13 districts collectorate especially Mumbai city and suburbs as developers owe Mumbai homeowners Rs 336 croreFurther speaking about the auction by the Panvel tehsildar the official stated that there is a difference between the recovery amount and actual fine levied on the developer ldquoThe amount recovered will be first disbursed to the flat buyers who are awaiting compensation Other properties of the erring developer will be identified and auctioned to recover the shortfall difference in the penalty and amount recovered till daterdquo the official saidLast week midday had reported that developers owe Mumbai homeowners Rs 336 crore including Rs 54 crore from the island city and nearly Rs 282 crore from the western and eastern suburbs Since December about 700 plus warrants have been issued across 14 districts of the state Of these nearly 304 were issued to erring developers in Mumbai city and the suburbs the highest in the state followed by Thane with 94 warrantsIn 2022 MahaRERA officials reviewed all complaints it had received since 2017 and prepared a list of developers who have failed to comply with the regulatorrsquos order related to refund of money or compensation to home buyers for pendingstalled projects or delayed delivery Accordingly over 700 warrants were issued for recovery of the pending duesUnder Section 40 of the Real Estate Regulation and Development Act 2016 on recovery of interest penalty or compensation or refund if the developerpromoter or real estate agent fails to pay up the cost is recovered as arrears of land revenue According to provisions of the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code the office of the district collector has the right to recover land revenue arrearsOnce the adjudicating officer issues the recovery warrants the collector office starts the process to attach the property If the developer still falls to pay the fine then the process to auction the property for recovery of dues is initiated