Moving to millennial cities across the country has given rise to cosmopolitan culture with people from different parts coming at one place and enjoying the luxuries which these cities have in abundance. The big malls and residential complexes which have allured millions haven’t been developed overnight and loads of investment has gone into these which have resulted in some of them becoming defunct now. One such giant group which is now struggling to pay its dues and complete its projects is Amrapali Group.

The rise and fall of the massive Amrapali Construction Company

Under the leadership of Dr.Anil Sharma, Chairman cum Managing Director of Amrapali Group, numerous projects were undertaken in Jaipur, Noida and Ghaziabad. The journey began in 2002 and Amrapali Group ventured into FMCG and media apart from holding a strong position in real estate. It was in 2016 when the brand ambassador of the group the then cricket captain, MS Dhoni quit his position because he was under the pressure from the homeowners who demanded the completion of the projects. Since then, there has been no road to recovery and as per the latest development; Supreme Court has directed thousands of Amrapali buyers to pay the outstanding dues either in instalments or lump sum by January 31, 2020. This will help in speedy completion of the projects which have been stalled for a long time.

What is the mandate of the Supreme Court?

The apex court has released an order wherein it has asked thousands of Amrapali homebuyers to pay the outstanding amount due by Jan 31, 2020. In addition to this, Supreme Court has also asked 28 banks which had entered into an agreement with the Amrapali Group to expedite the disbursement of funds within a month.

The centre had released Rs 25000 crore in November 2019 which was stated to be used for the completion of stalled projects throughout the country. A bench of justices under UU Lalit and Arun  Mishra further stated that the funds need to be channelized for completion of pending Amrapali projects so that home buyers can be at ease. As per the reports, only Rs 105 crore from a total of Rs 3000 crore has been paid so far by the buyers.

How did the situation become so grave?

Around 2500 homebuyers have moved to Supreme Court when they found the claims made by Amrapali Group failing in terms of delivery.

• This began in 2016 when under the pressure of the homebuyers of Sapphire project in Noida, the brand ambassador MS Dhoni had to quit.
• Post this, in August 2017, Corporation Bank announced that it would auction one of the buildings of Amrapali Group in sector 62 in Noida to recover the dues.
• This created panic in the home buyers and in September 2017, around 107 homebuyers moved to Supreme Court against one of the orders of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) which had admitted Bank of Baroda’s insolvency petition against Amrapali’s Silicon City Project in Noida.
• In March 2018, Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited had cut off the power supply to the four flamboyant projects of the Amrapali Group namely:
• Silicon City

• Platinum
• Zodiac
• Princely Estate in Noida

This happened because the group had failed to pay the outstanding bills of Rs 5 crore.

• In April 2018, MS Dhoni too had sued the Amrapali Group for Rs 150 crore because amount dues as brand ambassador had not been paid.

What is in store as on date?

In July 2019, Supreme Court had cancelled the registration of the projects of Amrapali Construction Company Noida which were registered with Uttar Pradesh Rea Estate Regulatory Authority.

1. National Building Construction Corporation Limited has now been directed to take over the reins of the embattled builder and complete the projects which are at different stages of construction. These projects are:

• Silicon City 1
• Silicon City 2
• Sapphire1
• Sapphire 2
• Zodiac
• Princely Estate
• Centurion Park Low Rise
• O2 Valley

This accumulates to 11258 units in Noida and Greater Noida which need to be completed.

1. Metal Scrap Trade Corporation has been directed by the Supreme Court to auction a fleet of 86 luxury cars which have been owned by the Amrapali Construction Company so that the proceedings can be used in completion of the projects.

The entire mayhem had begun when Bank of Baroda had initiated the proceedings for recovery. It has been brought into accounts that the Amrapali Group has a total liability of Rs 1000 crore which it owes to 10 banks and has a liability of Rs 3000 crore to Noida and Greater Noida Authorities.

JP Morgan and Amrapali Group

• Joint Director of Enforcement Directorate Rajeshwar Singh had confirmed the violations of FEMA by JP Morgan.
• Provisions in Prevention of Money Laundering Act have been violated and strict actions have been taken against the promoters.

Directions from the Court:

• NBCC has been instructed to complete the projects timely and it has been ensured that completion certificates are given to the homebuyers of Amrapali Group Noida Uttar Pradesh.
• Banks have been asked to what course of action they are following for NPAs and will they be willing to give fresh loans or not.
• Akhil Surekha, Surekha Amarpali Group Director has been asked to appear in person because he has failed to deposit Rs 167 crore as directed by the court and the same was shown to be siphoned off in the books.
• Anil Kumar Sharma, Priya Sharma and Ajay Sharma the directors of Amrapali Group have been put behind the bars.

The fall of the giant real estate developer has shattered the hopes of millions of home buyers who had invested their hard-earned money in the project with the promise of being given a home. The intervention of the Apex authority has resulted in bringing respite to many and with the deadline of Jan 31, 2020 funds will be made available which shall speed up the construction of the projects and hence delivery.