Latest news with #OzoneUrbana
India Today
08-08-2025
- Business
- India Today
UAE NRI homebuyers battle Ozone Group in India over undelivered homes
For thousands of Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), investing in real estate back home is not just a financial decision but an emotional one rooted in dreams of retiring in one's homeland, caring for ageing parents, and providing a sense of belonging. But for many buyers of the Ozone Urbana township project in Devanahalli, near Bengaluru, that dream has turned into a prolonged legal and emotional At the centre of this growing crisis is Errol John Noronha, a former Dubai-based NRI who had invested in two apartments in the township. According to him, the first flat cost approximately 1 crore, which he eventually recovered through Lok Adalat though only the principal amount, without interest. The second apartment, also worth over 1 crore, remains undelivered and the money is still held up with the builder. A Dream DeferredSpeaking to India Today Global, Noronha recalled being drawn to the Ozone Urbana project in 2015 after seeing aggressive marketing and a promise of a 240-bed hospital within the township. 'We were looking for something accessible for my in-laws, who are over 80 years old. That hospital promise made us book the apartment,' he followed was a cycle of delays, misleading assurances, and financial pressure. 'They kept calling from Dubai saying the project will be ready in three months then they introduced a scheme where I had to pay just 10%, and banks would pay the rest as EMI. But soon, banks stopped paying, and I had to step in again,' he situation reflects a larger pattern: builders making false promises, selling stalled properties, and continuing to collect money from unsuspecting buyers even while construction remains halted. Hundreds Join the FightNoronha's case is far from isolated. According to Sathies Kumar, a legal advisor to the Ozone Urbana Buyers' Association, over 2,000 homebuyers are affected in this project alone, with 60–70 buyers already represented legally. 'There are more than 500–600 writ petitions filed. Every time the project gets media coverage, more victims come forward,' Kumar and 117 others filed a writ petition in the Karnataka High Court, which granted a stay on their EMI payments in 2021. However, the developer has not paid a single rupee as directed, and banks have allegedly continued to attempt to debit customer accounts. Some buyers, despite the court order, have even received arrest warrants for Accountability, No AnswersThe case has raised serious concerns over the role of regulatory bodies. Noronha alleged that even after several pleas, RERA has failed to stop the sale of properties in the stalled township. 'He (the builder) is still selling apartments and plots. It's fraudulent. People are paying for properties that don't exist,' he to file FIRs were also met with resistance. 'Police refused to register cases, and court stays would magically appear within 24 hours of our attempts,' Noronha said, pointing to systemic failure and potential reports suggested that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated an investigation, CBI involvement remains uncertain. Noronha and others are now pinning their hopes on the ongoing hearings in the Karnataka High Court and the efforts of their new legal counsel, Advocate Anshul Gupta.A Human CostThe human toll of the alleged scam is staggering. From defence personnel who lost their retirement savings, to cancer patients left without shelter, Noronha says the damage is not just financial. 'It's heartbreaking. There are ex-Air Force, Navy, and Army officers in tears. These are people who fought for our country. Their money has been stolen, and no one is held accountable,' he managed to recover principal amounts for one flat through Lok Adalat, but the second apartment's value over 1 crore is still stuck. He alleges the builder tried to coerce him into withdrawing legal cases by offering partial refunds, but he refused: 'I'm standing up for others. I won't be bought off.'As legal battles continue and construction remains stalled, thousands of Indian citizens—many living abroad—are trapped in a bureaucratic and legal quagmire, fighting to reclaim their hard-earned money and case underscores the urgent need for real estate reforms, better enforcement of RERA rules, and swift legal redressal. In the absence of accountability, stories like that of Errol Noronha will continue to surface painful reminders of broken promises in India's booming but deeply troubled housing sector.- Ends
The Hindu
03-08-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Promoters of Ozone Urbana diverted project funds, says ED
The recent raids on the promoters of the much-delayed realty project Ozone Urbana Housing Township in Devanahalli taluk on the outskirts of Bengaluru by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on August 1, is said to have revealed that the promoters of the project 'diverted the money collected from the customers meant for completion of the project to other group entities and individuals not connected to the project'. In a statement issued on Sunday, ED said that during the search operations, various incriminating documents related to diversion and misappropriation of project funds have been found and seized from the various premises. Evidence with respect to double sale of a few flats has also been gathered and seized during the course of investigation, ED said. ED had raided 10 premises linked to the promoter of the project Ozone Urbana Infra Developers Pvt. Ltd. and its key management personnel in Bengaluru and Mumbai under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The main promoter of this group is Satyamoorthi Vasudevan, ED said. 'The investigation under PMLA, 2002, revealed that the accused company along with and its key management personnel have cheated hundreds of gullible customers by taking money from them for its project by the name Ozone Urbana and failing to deliver promised flats to money was collected from customers by inducing them and promising to pay EMIs to the banks against the loans taken by the home buyers till completion of the project. The company has also promised many buyers huge discounts in the name of various schemes such as buyback schemes,' ED said in its statement on Sunday. The integrated township project was to be handed over to buyers in 2018. However, till 2024, only 49% of the project was completed. Thus, the company neither handed over the project nor returned the money to the buyers.
Hans India
02-08-2025
- Business
- Hans India
ED raids against Bengaluru group in homebuyers ‘fraud' case
Bengaluru: The Enforcement Directorate on Friday conducted searches against a Bengaluru-based real estate company and its promoters who are accused of duping home buyers worth crores of rupees in the name of selling them flats in their residential project, official sources said. At least ten premises of Ozone Urbana Developers Pvt. Ltd. and its key management personnel were raided in Bangalore and Mumbai under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said. The main promoter of the group is Satyamoorthi Vasudevan. The company and its promoters were booked by the ED after taking cognisance of multiple police FIRs registered against them related to a residential project named Ozone Urbana in Devanahalli Taluk of Bengaluru. The integrated township project was to be handed over to buyers in 2018. However, till 2024, only 49 per cent of the project was completed, the sources said. The company 'failed' to hand over the project and has neither returned the money to the buyers, they claimed. It is alleged that the accused company and its key management personnel 'cheated' gullible home buyers by promising to pay their bank EMIs (taken for purchase of homes) until completion of the project. The company also promised many buyers 'huge' discounts, if they pay full amount in advance against the bookings and it also allegedly lured them with a 'buyback scheme'. It is alleged that the directors of the said company cheated its buyers collectively to the tune of hundreds of crores and misappropriated the funds, the ED sources said.
Time of India
01-08-2025
- Business
- Time of India
ED raids against Ozone Urbana Developers in homebuyers 'fraud' case
BENGALURU : The Enforcement Directorate on Friday conducted searches against a Bengaluru-based real estate company and its promoters who are accused of duping home buyers worth crores of rupees in the name of selling them flats in their residential project, official sources said. At least ten premises of Ozone Urbana Developers Pvt. Ltd. and its key management personnel were raided in Bangalore and Mumbai under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said. The main promoter of the group is Satyamoorthi Vasudevan . The company and its promoters were booked by the ED after taking cognisance of multiple police FIRs registered against them related to a residential project named Ozone Urbana in Devanahalli Taluk of Bengaluru. The integrated township project was to be handed over to buyers in 2018. However, till 2024, only 49 per cent of the project was completed, the sources said. The company "failed" to hand over the project and has neither returned the money to the buyers, they claimed. It is alleged that the accused company and its key management personnel "cheated" gullible home buyers by promising to pay their bank EMIs (taken for purchase of homes) until completion of the project. The company also promised many buyers "huge" discounts, if they pay full amount in advance against the bookings and it also allegedly lured them with a "buyback scheme". It is alleged that the directors of the said company cheated its buyers collectively to the tune of hundreds of crores and misappropriated the funds, the ED sources said.
Deccan Herald
01-08-2025
- Business
- Deccan Herald
ED raids against Bengaluru group in homebuyers 'fraud' case
The company and its promoters were booked by the ED after taking cognisance of multiple police FIRs registered against them related to a residential project named Ozone Urbana in Devanahalli Taluk of Bengaluru.
