Complainants cannot be made to wait indefinitely, says NCDRC; directs developer to refund Rs 4 Cr

Apex consumer commission NCDRC has directed a real estate developer to refund over Rs 4 crore along with interest to its customer, saying complainants cannot be made to wait indefinitely for possession.

The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has directed a Haryana developer to pay Rs 4.12 crore to Alok Kumar, currently residing in Japan, noting that the construction is yet to be completed after a lapse of more than six years from the date of booking.

"The complainants cannot be made to wait indefinitely for possession of the unit, as the construction is yet to be completed even after a period of more than 6 years has lapsed from the date of booking," NCDRC President R K Agrawal and member M Shreesha said.

The commission awarded Kumar interest on the principal amount after noting that he had taken loan from a bank for buying the apartment and had undergone "mental agony" and "monetary loss as Golden Peacock Residency Private Limited, the developers, failed to deliver possession of the flat.

"The interest is being awarded as it is seen that the complainant has paid interest to HDFC Bank Limited and has also undergone mental agony and monetary loss as the developer not only could not complete the construction on time and deliver possession of the said flat but also could not give any further promise with respect to the future delivery of possession of the subject flat," the commission said.

It also directed the developer to pay Rs 25,000 to Kumar towards litigation cost.

According to Kumar's complaint, he was looking for a residential accommodation upon his return to India from Tokyo and had booked an apartment with Golden Peacock Residency in its project, 'Micheal Schumacher World Tower', in Gurgaon, Haryana.

By September, 2015, Kumar had paid Rs 4.12 crore in total.

Kumar alleged in his complaint that during his visit to India in 2015, he was "shocked" to see that the construction work had been completely stopped since 2015.

He was informed that there was some dispute with the construction company due to which the work had stopped. However, he was assured that the project would soon be completed.

Despite repeated assurances, the construction was never resumed and in April, 2018, Kumar found that the site office of the developers was locked, after which he sent them a legal notice.