Anil Mithas, promoter of the Unnati Fortune Group, has been arrested by Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing for allegedly siphoning over ₹165 crore in bank loans meant for real estate projects. With dozens of buyers cheated, stalled construction, and a trail of shell firms, the case highlights a systemic abuse of India's real estate finance ecosystem.
Promised Projects, Betrayed Buyers
What began as a vision for luxury living in Noida and Gurugram has now crumbled into a textbook case of real estate fraud. Anil Mithas, 52, the promoter and key managerial figure of Unnati Fortune Holding Limited (UFHL), was arrested for diverting bank loans worth ₹165 crore — sanctioned for flagship projects like Aranya in Noida Sector 119 and Alder Grove/Uniworld Resorts in Gurugram — to shell companies and sister concerns.
The arrest followed a complaint by a private bank, which alleged that UFHL had availed loans in two tranches — ₹100 crore in 2016 and ₹65 crore in 2017, meant strictly for real estate development. However, according to ACP Amrutha Guguloth (EOW), forensic audits revealed that funds were misappropriated, properties were dual-mortgaged, and multiple units were fraudulently sold to different buyers.
Forensic Red Flags and a Trail of Shell Entities
The financial web started unraveling in 2019, when a creditor approached the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), alleging that 75 flats pledged to them were already mortgaged to the same private bank. This revelation led to the appointment of an interim resolution professional (IRP), who ordered a forensic audit of UFHL's books spanning from 2014 to 2019.
The findings were damning:
• Diversion of loan funds to unnamed sister firms and shell companies
• Dual mortgaging of under-construction and even proposed units
• Fabrication of ownership claims and use of forged documents for raising capital
• Multiple sales of the same apartment, sometimes to six different buyers
Under these revelations, a case was registered under IPC Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and later, 409 (criminal breach of trust by agent).
Further investigation revealed that Mithas was already under arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on May 8for a separate money laundering case. He was also a named accused in two previous EOW FIRs — one in 2017 and another in 2020 — involving similar allegations of shell firms and diverted project funds.
Buyers' Nightmares and Incomplete Dreams
The Aranya project in Noida Sector 119, launched in 2012, was marketed as a modern housing marvel. But more than a decade later, only 20–30% of the construction has been completed.
According to a Noida Authority audit (2018–19) initiated after buyer complaints, Mithas:
• Sold the same unit to multiple buyers
• Mortgaged proposed apartments (with no construction approvals) to several banks
• Left hundreds of homebuyers in financial, legal, and emotional turmoil
One such buyer, purchased a 3BHK flat in 2012 with promised possession in 2014-15. A decade later, he says he is still fighting for justice:
"I later discovered my flat had been sold to someone else too. Authorities failed to act in time. Buyers like me are still in limbo."
In another shocking episode, two IT park projects launched in Sector 144 (Noida-Greater Noida Expressway) during 2012–13 never saw construction begin, despite advance bookings.
Locals and investors say the company's Noida office was quietly shut down in recent months, and no official spokesperson was available to address queries.
"We trusted the brand. Now we trust no one," said another homebuyer, now stuck paying EMIs for a flat that only exists on paper.
