Mumbai: Developer Booked For Cheating 69 Individuals Out Of More Than ₹13.05 Crores In SRA Scam

The Amboli police have booked Jitendra Brahmbhatt, alias Jithubh Barot, owner of M/s Sahajanand Enterprises real estate company, for allegedly cheating 69 individuals out of more than Rs.13.05 crores. Brahmbhatt assured the people that he would redevelop a slum in Andheri West under the SRA (Slum Rehabilitation Authority) scheme, collected money from them, and distributed allotment letters but failed to provide flats.

A 48-year-old businessman, Amjad Arbani, filed a complaint against Brahmbhatt, leading the police to register an FIR against him on July 17.

According to the police report, Arbani, who resides in Andheri West and is a manufacturer of pharmaceutical machinery. In 2007, his father, Adamabdul Arbani, 82, was searching for a flat. An agent, Pradip Walia, introduced him to Jitendra Brahmbhatt, whose  M/s Sahajanand Enterprises real estate company was located in Goregaon West. Brahmbhatt informed him that his new project would start on Veera Desai Road, Andheri West. It was an SRA project and would be completed within three years.

Adamabdul Arbani visited the location and decided to purchase two flats, finalising the price at Rs.46.68 lakhs per flat. The developer asked for half the amount in cash and half via cheque, which Arbani paid, totalling Rs.67.50 lakhs. In December 2007, the developer provided allotment letters to Arbani.

Three years passed, but the project did not even start, and the slum was still there. The complainant and his father frequently asked about the flats, but the developers provided various reasons for the delay. In 2021, the slum was demolished, and construction started. However, the complainant discovered that instead of the M/s Sahajanand Enterprises board, a Transcon Developers board was erected at the location.

Upon inquiry, Brahmbhatt claimed they were partnering for the project.
Arbani and his father frequently asked about making an agreement, but Brahmbhatt evaded the questions and did not take any positive steps. After a few months, when the father-son duo visited the construction site, they learned that Brahmbhatt had taken money from 68 individuals under the pretence of selling flats in this project, collecting more than Rs.13.05 crores in total.

Brahmbhatt distributed allotment letters to people and assured them of making official agreements but never did so and did not return their money. 

Eventually, on behalf of his father, Amjad Arbani approached the Amboli police. This led the police to lodge a case against Brahmbhatt under sections 406 (breach of trust), 409 (criminal breach of trust), and 420 (cheating and dishonesty) of the Indian Penal Code, along with relevant sections of the Maharashtra Ownership Flats Act.