New Delhi: A Bharatiya Janata Party MP on Thursday stoked fresh controversy after equating the ongoing real estate crisis with a criminal offense such as rape after saying that builders who have “cheated” homebuyers should be “hanged”.
BJP MP Vijay Goel today raised the issue in the Rajya Sabha during the Zero Hour and said that strict action must be taken against builders who have taken money from people and not fulfilled their promises.
“Greedy builders have defrauded lakhs of homebuyers and all of them belong to the middle class section of the society. They have invested their hard-earned money for making their dream of having a home come true… But, they have been cheated by builders and such builders should be hanged. Their crime is no less than rape,” Goel said, according to news agency ANI.
Goel was referring to the real estate crisis in Noida and Greater Noida areas in the National Capital Territory and said that strict action must be taken against officials of banks as well who have “indulged in corruption in collusion with builders”.
“Strict action must also be taken against brand ambassadors of such companies,” Goel said.
The matter was picked up a few days after the Supreme Court of India directed the state and Union governments to act against those builders who have defrauded homebuyers, as the apex court also cancelled the registration of Amrapali Group under the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) Act.
The Supreme Court also asked the National Buildings and Construction Corporation (NBCC) to finish the unfinished housing projects of Amrapali Group, giving a huge sigh of relief to over 42,000 homebuyers who have been stuck in litigation for over two years. The apex court has also directed the Noida and Greater Noida authorities to furnish completion certificates to all those who are staying in various other properties of the group.
Shockingly, Supreme Court-appointed forensic auditors have claimed that the Group had engaged in “fraud agreements” with Rhiti Sports Management Pvt Ltd (RSMPL), the same company that handles Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s brand, allegedly to “divert” homebuyers’ money “illegally”.
