In another instance of cheating, a builder couple named Rafiq Solanki (50 yrs) and his wife Mehrunissa Solanki (45 yrs ) have absconded after taking 8-10 lakhs from flat buyers who were promised flats in a 7 storied building that the couple promised to construct in Sector 22 of Turbhe Village. The couple is alleged to have purchased a plot from a Project Affected Person (PAP) in sector 22 (Turbhe) and started construction in 2010. They showed a forged CC (Commencement Certificate) to buyers and accepted booking amounts ranging from 8 to 10 lakhs for flats in a 7 storied building, but when the final structure was completed, it had only 4 floors. The people who had booked flats from the 5th to the 7th floor were left high and dry. Finally on 2nd July, seven of them lodged FIRs at the Turbhe Police station under section 465,468,471,420 etc. It may help to point out that most buildings constructed in Gaothan areas are illegal and the High Court has issued orders for their demolition.

The Maharashtra state govt has decided to formulate a blanket Amnesty scheme for all illegal structures in Maharashtra that were constructed before 2015. But that policy has yet to be formulated. Besides that, the policy will have to be submitted to the High Court for approval and only then will it be implemented. Also, it is sure to be challenged in the Supreme Court for validity. So the chance of that policy succeeding is slim.

It may help to point out that just Digha alone has more than 100 illegal buildings constructed on MIDC land. Each of these buildings have flats which were sold cheap to buyers by local officials, corporators etc, in violation of all rules, thereby minting 100s of crores in the process. 3 NCP Corporators have already lost their positions and have been barred from the Municipal Corporation by the no nonsense Municipal Commissioner of Navi Mumbai Tukaram Munde who assumed charge just 3 months ago.

An online list of Commencement Certificates (CC) is also available at the NMMC Website, where buyers can check the validity of all documents of any project. Some projects may not be listed on the website and may require personal verification from the Town Planning office located on the 3rd floor of the new NMMC headquarters at Nerul. NMMC has also instructed the Registrars office not to register any sale agreement without a Commencement Certificate but to no avail.