CBI files 22 criminal cases against Builders and Bank Officials in large scale corruption in Real Estate Sector

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered 22 criminal cases against various builders in the National Capital Region (NCR) and unidentified officials of several financial institutions. A case was filed in Supreme Court of India by the victims. They said that they have been cheated by the builders and banks. After hearing the case, the Supreme Court of India directed CBI to properly investigate the case and file complaint against the builders.

Over the past few years, thousands of homebuyers across Delhi-NCR have been victims of cheating by real estate developers. Many of them invested their life savings into housing projects that were either delayed indefinitely or never completed. Adding to their troubles, financial institutions allegedly continued to recover loan EMIs through ‘Subvention Schemes’—a system where builders promise to pay EMIs on behalf of buyers during the construction phase. In many cases, these promises were broken, and buyers were forced to pay EMIs without receiving possession of their homes.

Distressed by these issues, affected homebuyers filed Special Leave Petitions (SLPs) before the Supreme Court, highlighting the collusion between developers and certain banks or financial institutions.

In April 2025, the Supreme Court, taking serious note of this “unholy nexus” between builders and financial institutions, directed the CBI to register seven Preliminary Enquiries (PEs) to examine the matter. Within just three months, CBI completed six out of the seven enquiries and submitted its findings to the Court.

After reviewing the status report, the Supreme Court ordered the CBI to escalate the matter by registering 22 Regular Cases against the accused builders and unnamed officials from various financial bodies.

The CBI carried out massive searches at 47 locations across Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, and other parts of NCR. These raids targeted offices and premises linked to the builders and involved officials.

During the searches, the agency recovered incriminating documents and digital evidence, which are now being analyzed to support the ongoing investigation.

The CBI’s probe aims to uncover the full scale of fraud and bring those responsible to justice—including not just builders but also bank or financial institution employees who may have knowingly facilitated these illegal loan schemes.

The investigation is still underway, and more details will be released soon.