Trapped in a villa: Bengaluru techies allege deceit, threats, and illegal lockout

What began as a dream home turned into a psychological ordeal for four professionals in Bengaluru. They had moved into a 4BHK villa in the upscale Prestige Langleigh Phase 1 in Whitefield, expecting calm and comfort. Instead, they were pulled into a year-long struggle involving intimidation, manipulation, and eviction — with ₹5 lakh stuck as a security deposit.

Priyansh Agarwal, a software engineer at Google, recounted on social media how the problems began. For six months, things were smooth. Then, essential services like power backup, water access, and facility entry were cut off. Residents from the gated community even tampered with water supply — allegedly because the owner had skipped maintenance payments for years.

The tenants, unaware of the pending dues, had been sending maintenance money to the landlady monthly. She claimed a legal dispute with the society and urged them to keep paying, saying it would “strengthen” her case.

Matters worsened when former tenants got in touch and warned them. Realising a pattern of withheld deposits and harassment, they asked to end the lease. The landlady, however, insisted they stay, knowing she couldn’t rent the villa in its current condition. When rent stopped, she allegedly threatened false harassment charges.

Despite a signed agreement promising a refund or new tenant, she broke into the villa, intimidated the house help, and seized the keys. The tenants were illegally locked out.

After police intervention, part of the deposit was returned. Shaken, they left. “Always verify with past tenants before renting,” Agarwal advised.

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