We Pay EMIs for Our ‘Lotus Panache’ Flat, but Will We Ever Get It?

3C’s ‘Lotus Panache’ in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. 

(Photo: Shruti Mathur/The Quint)

Video Editor: Purnendu Pritam
Cameraperson: Aviral Shah
Reporter: Aastha Gulati

I am Dr Punia, one of the many aggrieved homebuyers of 3C promoted Granite Gate Private Properties LTD  ‘Lotus Panache’ in Sector-110, Noida.

My husband and my son, both doctors, booked a flat in May 2010, the possession of which we were to get in September of 2013. The possession varied from 24 months to 39 months depending upon the category of the flat ie 2BHK to 4BHK. For us, it was 39 months for the latter.

The builders failed to deliver the project and incurred huge debts while doing so. As of January, they are facing insolvency proceedings.

Come 2019, we are still unsure if we would get our flat in the foreseeable future. In January this year, we were asked to take a fit-out. That is, they could provide the barest minimum for our flat, but without the occupation certificate. The UP police has declared this 'fit-out' as illegal for occupancy and has instructed the homebuyers to file a FIR against the builders.

Come 2019, we are still unsure if we would get our flat in the foreseeable future.(Photo: Aviral Shah/The Quint)

We have spent Rs 90 lakh on this flat, whereas the total cost of the flat was Rs 88 lakh. There has been an immense financial strain on us because of the bank loan and the EMIs. We thought we will have a flat for our children but till now we haven’t gotten the flat. Ours is not an isolated case.

Samarth Agarwal, a fellow flat-owner, says,

“The flat I purchased was for Rs 52 lakh and I paid 95 percent of the amount, ie Rs 46 lakh. But since, I haven’t got my flat yet, I have to keep paying the EMI, and I am also living on rent.”

Samarth Agarwal, Flat-owner

He further adds, “There are at least 3,000 people like me who are facing the same problem. They have to pay both EMI and rent. It is a tough phase for us all.”

Indeed it is.

We went to RERA as well, but they said that since we have approached National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) they won’t process the case. However, there has been no judgement from the NCDRC yet that favours homebuyers and helps in getting possession of our flat. We are impatient now.

I haven’t got my flat yet, I have to keep paying the EMI, and I am also living on rent.(Photo: Aviral Shah/The Quint)

Despite several protests and demonstrations, our woes have fallen on deaf ears. Dinesh Raswant, another flat-owner who purchased his flat in 2010, says,

“We have protested on various platforms like Jansunwai, PM Portal and others. Many protests were held in front of the 3C offices, builders’ houses as well as, on the site of their other projects like Lotus Green, but all in vain.”

It is even more frustrating when the builders give us false deadlines.

As Dinesh says, “Every year, they send an email saying, ‘Next time this will be ready.’ I have lost all hope from the builders. Now it's in NCLT process, so the builder is out of this project. We are depending on the court now.”

All we are asking for is the construction to begin and for us to get our flats.

Our case has been delayed for almost six years. The builder must be asked what happened to our money?

Many protests were held in front of  the 3C office. (Photo Courtesy: Sarita Punia)

The need of the hour is support from the government. We need an amendment wherein if a company goes to insolvency then the guarantors’ assets should be auctioned to bring back the money siphoned by the company.

What About the Residents of Lotus Panache?

Unfortunately, even the residents of Lotus Panache are disheartened. Himanshu Gehlot, a resident of Tower 5 at the society, says,

“We are still living without an occupation certificate and without clearances. There has been no registry, Noida Authority dues are pending. I don’t know what they are doing with our money.”

There are no basic facilities and amenities provided.(Photo: Aviral Shah/The Quint)

Kavita Gupta, another resident, tells me that there are no basic facilities and amenities provided that were promised when they shifted initially like a club, proper parking spaces.

“As residents, we are regularly paying the maintenance but the kind of money we are giving and the kind of facilities we are getting are not up to the mark.”

Kavita Gupta, Resident

In fact, residents have to pay for basic necessities on their own. For example, a resident Mukund told me that residents of towers 5, 6, and 7 have collectively pooled their funds to install a basic CCTV. "From the builder's side, we don’t really see any intent or interest where he really cares for the residents,” he says.

The Noida Authority should have monitored and supervised the construction of the project, but, it completely failed to do so. Further, it doled out land parcels to the 3C promoters in spite of them cheating the homebuyers.

(Photo: Aviral Shah/The Quint)

I feel that financial audits and transaction audits should be carried out from the start of the project, which will clearly show where funds have been diverted.

Our only request to the media and government is to highlight aggrieved homebuyers’ plight and take appropriate measures, especially against Noida Authority who is not letting the RA process finalise. Most of the homebuyers want one developer to construct the project with amenities and operate it after completion. Is that too much to ask for?

(The Quint reached out to 3C but has not received a response from them. The copy will be updated once there is a response.)

(All 'My Report' branded stories are submitted by citizen journalists to The Quint. ThoughThe Quint inquires into the claims/allegations from all parties before publishing, the report and the views expressed above are the citizen journalist's own. The Quint neither endorses, nor is responsible for the same.)