In New Delhi, a collective of influential individuals—including politicians, film stars, lawyers, bureaucrats, businessmen, and top executives of multinational companies—has been embroiled in a protracted battle for possession of apartments situated in the heart of the city. For several months now, there has been no indication of a resolution in sight. "We literally financed this project for the Commonwealth Games, and now we are stuck. I invested all my hard-earned money to purchase a home here," lamented Dhiraj Mathur, an executive director at Pricewaterhouse Coopers and one of the 280 buyers who acquired apartments in the Commonwealth Games village complex. These luxury apartments were initially constructed to accommodate athletes during the 2010 Games and were sold at prices ranging from INR 2 crore to INR 6 crore. However, occupancy has been denied to buyers following allegations of bribery associated with the event.
"I poured my life savings into two apartments in the village, as I didn’t own any property in Delhi," explained former cricketer and parliamentarian Navjot Singh Sidhu, who spent close to INR 6 crore. "If I had invested this money elsewhere, I would have seen a decent return by now." Collectively, around 280 buyers—including notable figures such as ITC's YC Deveshwar, danseuse Shovana Narayan, lawyer Rajiv Luthra, former finance secretary Ashok Jha, and Attorney General Goolam E. Vahanvati—have invested approximately INR 1,500 crore in these flats.
Numerous buyers resorted to taking bank loans for their property purchases and have been burdened by heavy interest payments over the last three years. The situation has been exacerbated by the central bank’s adjustment of interest rates, which has occurred nine times within the past year, resulting in rising costs. "I’ve been paying an average EMI (equated monthly installment) of about INR 2 lakh for the last three years since buying the flat. Currently, most of my EMI payments are directed towards interest," stated an employee from IFC, New Delhi, who had purchased a four-bedroom flat for around INR 3 crore and secured a loan of INR 2.25 crore from Citibank. His interest rate has surged from the original 9.1 percent to a staggering 12.5 percent, thus inflating his interest costs within the EMI by at least 30 percent. As it stands, the apartments remain uninhabited, deteriorating with broken doors and windows that allow stray dogs and birds to enter, reflecting a state of neglect since the Games concluded in October last year.