New Delhi: On Monday, the Supreme Court instructed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to initiate seven preliminary inquiries to examine the connections between builders and banks involved in subvention schemes.
The federal agency will scrutinize various Supertech projects and the involvement of banks that have extended loans for these housing developments in the national capital region (NCR) and other states. One of the inquiries will focus on Supertech projects and the banks that have provided over ₹5,000 crore in loans under the subvention scheme for multiple housing initiatives.
Additionally, another inquiry will be initiated to investigate the projects of builders located outside the NCR. The remaining five inquiries will assess the roles of five government authorities: Noida, Greater Noida, Yamuna Expressway Industrial Authority, Gurugram Authority, and Ghaziabad Development Authority.
To facilitate the investigation, the CBI will establish a special investigation team comprising personnel from the Uttar Pradesh and Haryana state police, as most of the projects under scrutiny are situated in the NCR. Furthermore, the apex court has mandated land development authorities, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, RERA of UP and Haryana, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to designate nodal officers who will assist the CBI or the SIT by providing all requested information.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has also been instructed to supply the services of three chartered accountants to aid the SIT in examining the ‘builder-banker’ connection. The Supreme Court has requested the first interim report within a month, indicating that the situation will be reviewed on a monthly basis.
