Jaiprakash Associates deposits Rs 1.25 billion in Supreme Court registry

Embattled realty firm Jaiprakash Associate Limited (JAL) has deposited Rs 125 crore in the Supreme Court, which had directed it to submit the money by today to safeguard the interests of the hassled homebuyers.

Sources said that JAL, which had so far deposited Rs 425 crore with the apex court registry, has deposited the remaining amount of Rs 125 crore as per the earlier direction of the top court.

With this, JAL has so far deposited Rs 550 crore in the apex court registry in pursuance to the court's direction.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra had earlier asked the firm to deposit Rs 2,000 crore with its registry.

Later, the bench had directed JAL to deposit the amount in instalments. It had asked the firm to deposit Rs 550 crore in three tranches by today.

The top court had on January 10 directed JAL, the holding firm of Jaypee Infratech Ltd (JIL), to provide details of its housing projects in the country, saying the homebuyers should either get their houses or their money back.

It had refused to accord urgent hearing on a plea of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) seeking its nod to initiate insolvency proceedings before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) against JAL, saying it would be dealt with at a later stage.

The bench had asked advocate Pawan Shree Agrawal, who was appointed as amicus curiae to assist it, to set up a second portal to take note of grievances of the homebuyers of JAL and said the grievance portal be "kept alive". Earlier, a similar portal was directed to be set up for the homebuyers of JIL.

Terming the interest of homebuyers as "important", the bench had said that JAL will have to deposit money in pursuance of its earlier order and had cautioned against any sale of the assets of JIL and JAL and against their merger or de-merger.

Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi and lawyer Anupam Lal Das, appearing for JAL, had told the bench that only eight per cent homebuyers had opted for refund of money, while 92 per cent wanted delivery of their homes.

Homebuyers including one Chitra Sharma, through lawyer Ashwarya Sinha, had moved the apex court saying around 32,000 people had booked their flats and were now paying instalments.

Hundreds of home buyers have been left in the lurch after the NCLT, on August 10 last year, had admitted the IDBI Bank's plea to initiate insolvency proceedings against the debt- ridden realty company for defaulting on a Rs 526 crore loan, the plea has said.