Video Editor: Mohd Ibrahim
Cameraperson and Reporter: Meghnad Bose
In May 2015, I booked a 3 BHK flat at ‘The Pyramid’ by Mounthill Realty, at Rajarhat in Kolkata. I paid 50 percent ie Rs 30 lakh of the total price of the flat.
We were supposed to get the possession in 2018, with an extended period of one year. However, we are halfway through 2019, and construction work at the site is at a standstill, just like it was four years back. Around 500 of the 600 flats have been sold.
In fact, last year I learned that the builders do not have the permit to construct even till sixth floor, let alone a tenth floor.
Why, then, did the builder sell flats on the 10th floor without prior approval?
Ironically, when the project was launched, they had spent crores, with an elaborate function and performances. Four and a half years later, nothing has been done. The Rs 30 lakh I spent, my hard-earned money, is lost!
I married my wife, Pallavi, a year and a half ago. We have been staying in a rented apartment and have moved thrice. Neither are we able to get a refund, nor are we able to book/buy another flat. We pay Rs 1.8 lakhs annually on rent, which is not a small amount. As my wife says, we could have had a flat and stayed with our parents by now, but that is not at all possible looking at the status of the construction.
My father and I invested together, put in our life savings, but upon realising the project may never be delivered, we have become strained mentally and financially. My father is sick as well.
They had promised us a beautiful flat with a lot of amenities, like a swimming pool, other basic stuff like a basketball court or a gym. But, there's not even a single worker at the site. The entire building looks like an abandoned, ghost building.
What’s worse is that even if I ask for a refund now, they will give me Rs 18 lakh – and deduct Rs 12 lakh – after 365 days. Even after waiting and incurring losses for four years, I will have to wait another year. That is five years. And I will get only Rs 18 lakh.
We have visited the Mounthill office several times, but each time we go, they give us some excuse. They say, “Wait for three months, it will be done in four months, or two months.” They are just delaying it by saying all this.
In fact, we met with Hemant Sikaria, the Mounthill Chairperson/MD. He threatened us and said, ‘If you go to the police, they’ll arrest me. What will happen to your flats then?’
The way these people have deceived us, it is actually difficult to think about getting another flat or investing elsewhere.
(The Quint reached out to Mounthill Realty but has not received a response from them. The copy will be updated if and when they respond.)
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