The Central Crime Branch (CCB) of Bengaluru has registered a case against Ozone Urbana Infra Developers Private Limited and several banks and financial institutions for allegedly defrauding homebuyers of Rs 3,300 crore. The complaint was filed by Errol John Noronha, president of the Ozone Urbana Buyers Welfare Association.
According to the complaint, the developers secured loans in the names of homebuyers, misappropriated funds, and failed to complete the promised housing projects.
The complaint, filed by Errol John Noronha, president of the Ozone Urbana Buyers Welfare Association, accused the developer and financiers of obtaining loans in buyers’ names without project completion, diverting funds to other entities, and defrauding customers. The developer reportedly secured Rs 1,500 crore in mortgage loans and Rs 1,800 crore through other transactions, totalling Rs 3,300 crore in misappropriated funds.
These funds were meant for the completion of the Ozone Urbana township project in Devanahalli, which was launched in 2012. However, the project is only 49% complete, far behind its promised deadline of 2017.
Homebuyers allege that the developers used aggressive marketing strategies to attract buyers, promising to cover their EMIs until the project’s completion. Despite these assurances, the funds were allegedly diverted to other entities, leaving buyers and financial institutions in distress.
The accused include major financial institutions such as Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC), Indiabulls Housing Finance, Bank of Baroda, and Piramal Capital and Housing Finance. The charges filed against the developers and financial institutions include criminal breach of trust, cheating, and criminal conspiracy under various sections of the Indian Penal Code. The Karnataka Protection of Interest of Depositors in Financial Establishments Act has also been invoked.
Despite instructions from the Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (K-RERA) to deposit 70% of the funds into an escrow account, the developers allegedly failed to comply. This, along with repeated neglect of buyer grievances, has led to significant financial losses for all parties involved.
Named suspects include Ozone Urbana managing director Vasudevan Satyamoorthy, his wife Priya Vasudevan, Satyamoorthy Sai Prasad, Durbhakula Vamsi Sai, Srinivasan Gopalan, and Seewosagar Nemchand.
The case reached the Karnataka High Court, with a writ petition filed by the buyers association on August 12 seeking justice for affected homebuyers.