Unitech homebuyers seek urgent appointment of CMD as projects remain stalled

Unitech homebuyers have stepped up their demand for the immediate appointment of a chairman and managing director (CMD) for the court-supervised real estate company, saying the leadership vacancy is affecting construction, project deliveries and customer service.

An online petition addressed to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has crossed 1,500 signatures, while five homebuyer associations have separately urged the government and the Supreme Court to intervene.

The CMD post fell vacant on July 20 after the tenure of Yudhvir Singh Malik, IAS (Retd), ended. Malik had been appointed CMD by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in January 2020 following a Supreme Court order that replaced the company’s erstwhile promoter-led board. His term was extended several times, most recently for six months from January 21, 2026.

The latest demand comes at a crucial stage for Unitech, with the Supreme Court examining how the company’s assets should be valued and sold and how the money should be distributed among stakeholders.

On May 27, the Supreme Court appointed PwC as an independent agency to examine competing proposals from the government-appointed board and lenders. PwC has been given a broad mandate to suggest ways to value and monetise Unitech’s assets, with the interests of homebuyers, lenders and the company to be protected. The matter is scheduled to come up again on September 30.

Buyers seek sale of unsold assets

Homebuyer associations have also called for Unitech’s unsold assets to be auctioned so that the proceeds can be used to complete stalled projects.

Vibha Batra, president of Espace Premiere Owners Association, said many buyers who booked homes in 2010-11 and were promised possession in 2013-14 are still waiting for their homes.

According to estimates cited by the associations, around ₹11,000-12,000 crore may now be needed to complete the stalled projects, while about ₹3,000 crore could be collected from existing customers. This suggests a funding gap of roughly ₹8,000-9,000 crore.

The associations have identified the lack of funds and the vacant CMD position as two major hurdles to completing projects.

Lenders have ₹15,000 crore claims

The funding challenge is complicated by the large claims made by Unitech’s lenders.

Eleven lenders have submitted claims totalling about ₹15,005 crore, while Unitech’s books show liabilities of around ₹14,130 crore. A large part of the difference between the two figures has to be reconciled.

The company’s books show that about ₹10,686 crore of its liability is in the form of interest and penal interest.

However, the government-appointed board has told the Supreme Court that the total loans actually disbursed were around ₹5,117 crore, of which ₹3,729 crore had already been repaid.

The board has also said that monetising unsold project and non-project assets will be critical to moving the stalled projects forward.

Completion cost has risen sharply

The financial challenge has grown significantly since the government-appointed board prepared its resolution framework in 2021.

At that time, the cost of completing all ring-fenced projects was estimated at around ₹5,005 crore, with another ₹500-1,000 crore required as priority funding.

The framework had estimated that ₹3,329 crore could still be collected from homebuyers and that unsold inventory was worth about ₹8,841 crore.

Homebuyer associations now estimate that ₹11,000-12,000 crore may be required for completion, indicating a sharp rise in the cost of finishing the projects over the past six years.

The 2021 framework covered 24,604 units across 49 residential projects. Of these, 20,547 units had been sold and 14,834 were awaiting delivery.

Projects continue to face delays

Unitech’s latest project-completion disclosure, updated on July 15, shows that 74 residential and 12 commercial projects have been identified for completion. Of these, 16 projects — 10 residential and six commercial — are marked as completed.

Several projects are still held up by regulatory approvals.

All 11 Kolkata projects have contracts awarded, but nine remain stalled because of building-plan renewal and validation issues. Four Chennai projects are awaiting environmental clearance and consent-to-establish approvals.

Two projects in Rewari are awaiting licence renewal, while Anthea Floors in Gurugram had to be re-tendered following delays in obtaining Supreme Court approval.

The company’s possession data shows that possession has been offered to 1,284 buyers across its projects. Of these, 1,007 buyers took possession between January 2020 and July 14, 2026.

In Noida’s Sector 117, six phases are still listed as work in progress. Work on a seventh phase has been awarded only for the basement, convenience shopping area and two towers, with construction yet to begin on the ground.

The homebuyers’ latest demand therefore comes against a backdrop of a large funding requirement, unresolved lender claims and continuing regulatory hurdles, making the appointment of a full-time leadership head a key concern for buyers as the Supreme Court considers the next phase of Unitech’s revival.

Also See: ED to Delhi HC: 42% of Jaypee homebuyers’ funds diverted to F1 track, hospital, and other ventures