Trouble mounts for Amrapali Group as SC orders sealing of 9 properties in UP, Bihar

There is no end of woes for real estate builder Amrapali Group as the Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered sealing of as many as nine premises of the realty giant.

The order came after 3 arrested directors informed SC that documents relating to 46 group companies are stacked at these locations. (Image: PTI)

New Delhi: There is no end of woes for real estate builder Amrapali Group as the Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered sealing of as many as nine premises of the realty giant located in areas including Noida, Greater Noida, Rajgir and Buxar in Bihar. According to a report by news agency ANI, the order came after the three arrested directors of the group informed the top court that documents relating to 46 group companies are stacked at these locations. A bench of Justices U U Lalit and D Y Chandrachud also ordered the sealing of two properties of the group at Rajgir and Buxar in Bihar, saying that after the sealing of these properties, its keys be handed over to the registrar of the apex court. The top court directed three directors of the group, who are in police custody, to file an undertaking that no documents are kept at any other place except at these nine properties of the real estate firm. It also stressed that only the court appointed forensic auditors and their authorised representatives can enter the premises which are to be sealed. Supreme Court, on October 9, ordered immediate police custody to three directors of Amrapali Group after they failed to submit the asked documents of the 46 group companies to forensic auditors. A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and U U Lalit took exception to the Amprapali group for not handing over all the documents to forensic auditors and said that they will remain in police custody till they hand over all the documents. Amrapali promoter Anil Kumar Sharma along with two other directors – Shiv Priya and Ajay Kumar – was arrested inside the courtroom after an hour of hearing. Supreme Court's order came in the wake of several petitions filed by home buyers who are seeking possession of around 42,000 flats. The apex court said the conduct of the directors was in "gross violation" of its order. “You are playing hide and seek. You are trying to mislead the court,” the bench had said. The top court also directed both UP and Delhi police to seize all the documents of the group and hand them over to the forensic team, emphasising that not a single document related to the case should not remain with the company. The top court had on September 26 allowed the National Buildings Construction Corporation Ltd (NBCC) to float tenders for selecting the builder to complete the stalled projects of Amrapali Group. The court also directed the NBCC to prepare a detailed project report for pending projects within 60 days.