Corrupt agents using PM housing scheme for massive fraud in Delhi

The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), launched in 2015, has benefited millions of underprivileged families across India, offering them access to affordable housing. However, a recent sting operation by India Today has revealed a disturbing scam unfolding in the heart of Delhi, where unscrupulous middlemen are exploiting the scheme for personal gain, tainting the Centre’s flagship programme’s reputation in urban areas.
In November 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed over keys to 3,024 newly constructed flats in South Delhi’s Kalkaji area to beneficiaries of the PMAY scheme. These flats, designated for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) and low-to-middle income groups, were meant to provide much-needed housing to Delhi’s marginalised communities.
However, the prime location in posh South Delhi has attracted a real estate mafia eager to capitalise on the scheme, selling these flats at a premium to anyone willing to pay.
India Today’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) conducted an undercover operation to expose this fraudulent network of brokers and property dealers involved in the illegal sale of PMAY flats.
The investigation began with the team meeting Sanjay Kumar Pandit, a broker from Sarita Vihar, who works for a Noida-based builder. Pandit revealed that the flats in Kalkaji, originally built by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for displaced slum dwellers, were being sold illegally.
“These flats were initially built for people whose slums were demolished,” Pandit explained. “But some DDA employees decided to sell off the remaining inventory for a hefty profit. If you’re willing to pay Rs 6.5 lakhs, the flat is yours”.
Pandit assured the undercover reporter that the deal was simple: half the payment upfront, followed by fabricated documentation to make it appear as if the buyer was a former slum resident.
“We will create proof that your house was in a slum area,” Pandit said, assuring full legal paperwork.
To confirm the scheme’s legitimacy, the reporter was introduced to Sudhir Sharma, a builder and the primary orchestrator behind the scam. During a meeting at his office in Noida, Sharma affirmed that everything Pandit had explained was accurate, including transferring funds to Sharma’s wife’s account to avoid scrutiny.
Sharma explained that buyers should not be government employees to avoid complications. He even provided a false DDA survey card, showing how individuals who never lived in slums could easily acquire these subsidised flats.
The investigation took a deeper turn when the India Today reporter met Sheshmani, a DDA contract worker stationed at the Kalkaji site. Claiming to have worked there since construction began, Sheshmani admitted that he had personally acquired multiple flats using fraudulent methods.
“I’ve taken four flats under different names — one for my child, one for my wife, and two for myself,” he said, revealing how widespread the scam had become.
Sheshmani, working closely with Jagdish Chandra, a DDA employee described as the mastermind behind the operation, also stressed on making payment for the flats in cash transactions to avoid detection. He suggested paying Rs 8 lakh for the four flats, with the rest of the payment to be made in cash.
The India Today team also uncovered heartbreaking stories of people like Ali Jaan, a victim of the PMAY fraud.
Jaan, hoping to secure a flat for his daughter under the scheme, paid Rs 3 lakhs to middlemen. Despite providing the money, Jaan has yet to receive a flat.
“They told me that they could arrange a house under the Prime Minister’s Housing Scheme for my daughter. I gave them Rs 50,000 in cash at first, then two more instalments, Rs 3 lakhs in total,” Jaan told the India Today reporter who spoke to him in disguise.
Moinuddin, another key player in the scam, explained how the system worked, offering falsified documents such as Aadhaar cards and ration cards to pass off to buyers as slum dwellers.
To bolster his claims, Moinuddin introduced our reporters to Jameel, a property owner from Zakir Nagar, who paid Rs 7 lakhs to secure a PMAY flat despite never having lived in a slum.
“I’ve never lived in a slum,” Jameel openly admitted. “I own a flat in Zakir Nagar, and I sold my previous flat in Shaheen Bagh for Rs 1.05 crore just a few months ago”. Despite his substantial wealth, Jameel sought to buy a PMAY flat at a subsidised price, likely with the intent of reselling it for a profit later.
This scandal is not limited to a few individuals; it involves a complex network of middlemen, DDA employees, and builders exploiting Delhi’s real estate market. Many buyers, like Jameel, who owns property worth crores, are investing in these low-cost flats with the intention of reselling them for a substantial profit.