‘Still waiting for my money’: Gurgaon’s Rs 446-crore crackdown on builders brings hope to buyers

The district administration ordered the immediate freezing of bank accounts of 71 developers to recover Rs 446 crore in pending penalties and refund certificates issued by the Haryana Real Estate Regulatory Authority (HRERA), Gurugram, officials said.

Several of these recovery certificates have remained unpaid for more than four years.

Apart from freezing operational accounts, revenue officials have initiated proceedings to attach the movable and immovable properties of the builders under the Punjab Land Revenue Act, as applicable to Haryana.

Authorities warned that if the dues cannot be realised through bank balances or asset attachments, the administration will invoke provisions for the civil arrest and detention of defaulting promoters. Formal demand notices have been issued directing the firms to clear the outstanding liabilities immediately.

The defaulters

The list is concentrated heavily among several prominent developers across newer sectors in Gurugram. Leading it is Ansal Housing and Ansal Construction Housing with Rs 91 crore in unpaid dues, followed closely by Raheja Developers at Rs 90 crore, Vatika Limited at Rs 80 crore, and Parsvnath Developers at Rs 74 crore. Other major defaulters facing enforcement action include Ramprastha Promoters (Rs 57 crore), IREO (Rs 24 crore), and ILD Millennium (Rs 8.59 crore).

Under Section 40(1) of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, monetary awards and refund orders issued by the regulator are recoverable through district authorities as arrears of land revenue.

Deputy Commissioner Uttam Singh said that while HRERA penalises non-compliant builders, regulatory orders remain largely ineffective if the relief fails to reach the aggrieved buyer on the ground.

“The authority does its part by penalising the builder, but so long as the recovery does not reach the homebuyer, the entire process remains toothless,” DC Singh said. “The money will be recovered from the frozen bank accounts or the attached properties. If that fails, further steps under the Act will be taken, which may also lead to arrests. No builder will be allowed to sit over amounts that lawfully belong to the homebuyers.”

He noted that recovery proceedings in the district had been stalled in the past, and the current action follows a comprehensive review of all pending recovery certificates. Weekly progress reviews will be conducted by the Deputy Commissioner, while Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) and Tehsildars will be directed to execute recoveries in a time-bound manner.

Recovery proceedings

The district administration’s intervention addresses a key procedural bottleneck that emerged over the past year. HRERA Gurugram Chairperson Arun Kumar termed the crackdown an essential intervention to enforce compliance.

“Earlier, the adjudicating officer had the power to freeze accounts and attach properties, but the same was stayed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court last year,” Kumar told The Indian Express. “We welcome the step … it is much needed and the first of this scale in my experience. It is part of the execution proceedings only, so that developers are forced to pay and ultimately the funds reach the affected buyers.”

Kumar added that the authority has recovered approximately Rs 600 crore for homebuyers till date, though execution frequently runs into practical obstacles when companies declare bankruptcy or their promoters abscond.

For individual buyers, coercive measures offer a glimmer of hope after protracted legal battles. Homebuyers holding recovery certificates issued in their favour have been advised by the district administration to contact the office of the District Revenue Officer (DRO) or the SDM and Tehsildar concerned to track the execution status of their claims.