Panel to look into Jaypee homebuyers' issue set up: Paswan

Homebuyers have filed 400 complaints against the company through the National Consumer Helpline of the ministry.

New Delhi, Sep 9: With the Jaypee Infratech filing an insolvency petition, Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Saturday said his ministry has so far received 400 complaints from aggrieved homebuyers and an in-house panel has been set up to look into the matter.

Jaypee Infratech, which is developing about 32,000 flats and plots across various projects in its township project 'Wish Town' in Noida, has been facing protests and litigation from homebuyers due to huge delays in completion of projects.

"The panel to be headed by the consumer affairs secretary will study and submit a status report within three days. We will see if there is any jurisdiction...We want to protect the interest of homebuyers," Paswan told reporters.

Homebuyers have filed 400 complaints against the company through the National Consumer Helpline of the ministry. These complaints have been forwarded to concerned departments/ ministries for redressal, he said.

Around 141 homebuyers have filed cases against the real estate firm in consumer courts. IDBI Bank has also filed an insolvency petition before the National Company Law Tribunal, which the Supreme Court stayed recently, he added. Currently, there are 60 National Consumer Helpline centres (NCHs) in the country.

Paswan said six regional consumer helpline centres will be operational from October 10 this year. Each region would have ten helpline centres. The state-operated consumer helpline centres are about 24, which are being updated with new software and integrated with the national centres, he added.

Following the insolvency petition against the debt-ridden Jaypee Infratech, hundreds of home buyers gathered at the company office in Noida in August, shouting slogans against the management and demanding refund of their investments.

PTI