CONSUMER PROTECTION AGAINST COLONISERS AND BUILDERS
A BLOG BY
GAURAV RAJ BHAGAT
ADVOCATE
HIGH COURT M.P
INTELLISOL LEGAL CONSULTANTS
offers a wonderful platform to the deceived consumers who had been buying
Houses/Plots/pieces of lands from the builders or the promoters who in the wake
of false and deceptive promises had been marauding the hard earned money of
such consumers.
Landmark judgement passed in 1993
Lucknow Development Authority
v/s
M.K.Gupta,
Hon’ble Supreme Court of
India passed a judgment stating that “all
builders/contractor(s)/all concerned authorities of any State engaged in Housing
Construction activity in any manner are amenable to Consumer Protection Act,
1986 for any act or omission relating to housing activity such as: “Delay in
delivery of possession, non-completion of construction within the stipulated
time, defective and faulty construction and more…”
RESPITE TO THE CUSTOMERS
The judgement clearly states
the fact that a builder who constructs a house or hires the services of a
contractor to develop a property is engaged in the act of providing service to
his customer, and for which he is getting monetarily compensated.
JUSTIFIABLE IN THE
COURT OF LAW
UNDER
CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, 1986
This makes him a
service provider and hence liable under the clauses of Consumer Protection Act,
1986.
The International Consumer
Rights Protection Council has listed down the following grounds in which a
property buyer can drag an incompetent property developer to the Consumer
Court.
a. Non-execution of
relevant sale agreement despite having received a substantial advance amount
b. Non-issuance of
copies of all relevant documents viz.; development agreement, power of
attorney, sanctioned plan (by concerned Regional Authorities), specification of
construction materials/design as per sanctioned plan and any other relevant
documents
c. Charged higher than
the agreed amount
d. No issuance of
proper receipt(s) against the paid amount
e. Poor quality
construction
f. Delivering of a
house not complying to agreed specifications
g. No free parking
space within the premises
h. Did not form a
co-operative housing society and handed over to members
i. Non-provision of
water storage tank
j. Non-provision of
proper ventilation and light
k. Delayed possession
beyond the stipulated time limit
l. Not obtaining
completion certificate from the concerned registered (by the authorities)
architect
m. Non-issuance of
Occupancy Certificate at the time of delivery of respective flats/house to its
occupants
n. Non-declaration of
expenses against which the developer collected money
Any project falling
short of above listed causes are liable and eligible to be taken an action
against.
The real estate regulation and development act 2016 has come into force
on 25 March 2016 with its primary object if a stated as below” and the absence
of professionalism and standardize a shun and lack of adequate consumer
protection this act is required. To
consumer protection act 1986 is a billion as a forum to the buyers in the real
estate market the recourse is only corrective and is not adequate to address
all the concerns of the buyers and promoters and that’s it.
IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS THAT EVERY CUSTOMER MUST KNOW
ALLOTTEE in relation to a real estate project, means the person to whom a plot,
apartment or building, as the case may be, has been allotted, sold (whether as
freehold or leasehold) or otherwise transferred by the promoter, and includes
the person who subsequently acquires the said allotment through sale, transfer
or otherwise but does not include a person to whom such plot, apartment or
building, as the case may be, is given on rent;
APARTMENT whether called block, chamber, dwelling unit, flat, office, showroom, shop,
godown, premises, suit, tenement, unit or by any other name, means a separate
and self-contained part of any immovable property, including one or more rooms
or enclosed spaces, located on one or more floors or any part thereof, in a
building or on a plot of land, used or intended to be used for any residential
or commercial use such as residence, office, shop, showroom or godown or for
carrying on any business, occupation, profession or trade, or for any other
type of use ancillary to the purpose specified;
BUILDING includes any structure or erection or part of a structure or erection which is intended to be used for residential, commercial or for the purpose of any business, occupation, profession or trade, or for any other related purposes;
CARPET AREA means the net usable floor area of an apartment,
excluding the area covered by the external walls, areas under services shafts,
exclusive balcony or verandah area and exclusive open terrace area, but
includes the area covered by the internal partition walls of the apartment
COMMON AREA mean— (i) the entire land for the real estate project or where the
project is developed in phases and registration under this Act is sought for a
phase, the entire land for that phase; (ii) the stair cases, lifts, staircase
and lift lobbies, fir escapes, and common entrances and exits of buildings;
(iii) the common basements, terraces, parks, play areas, open parking areas and
common storage spaces; (iv) the premises for the lodging of persons employed
for the management of the property including accommodation for watch and ward
staffs or for the lodging of community service personnel; (v) installations of
central services such as electricity, gas, water and sanitation,
air-conditioning and incinerating, system for water conservation and renewable
energy; (vi) the water tanks, sumps, motors, fans, compressors, ducts and all
apparatus connected with installations for common use; (vii) all community and
commercial facilities as provided in the real estate project; (viii) all other
portion of the project necessary or convenient for its maintenance, safety,
etc., and in common use;
GARAGE means a place within a project having a roof and walls on three sides for
parking any vehicle, but does not include an unenclosed or uncovered parking
space such as open parking areas;
INTEREST means the rates of interest payable by the promoter or the allottee, as the
case may be. Explanation.—For the purpose of this clause— (i) the rate of interest
chargeable from the allottee by the promoter, in case of default, shall be
equal to the rate of interest which the promoter shall be liable to pay the
allottee, in case of default; (ii) the interest payable by the promoter to the
allottee shall be from the date the promoter received the amount or any part
thereof till the date the amount or part thereof and interest thereon is
refunded, and the interest payable by the allottee to the promoter shall be
from the date the allottee defaults in payment to the promoter till the date it
is paid;
REAL ESTATE AGENT means any person, who negotiates or acts on behalf of one
person in a transaction of transfer of his plot, apartment or building, as the
case may be, in a real estate project, by way of sale, with another person or
transfer of plot, apartment or building, as the case may be, of any other
person to him and receives remuneration or fees or any other charges for his
services whether as commission or otherwise and includes a person who
introduces, through any medium, prospective buyers and sellers to each other
for negotiation for sale or purchase of plot, apartment or building, as the
case may be, a, and includes property dealers, brokers, middlemen by whatever
name called;
REAL ESTATE PROJECT means the development of a building or a building consisting of
apartments, or converting an existing building or a part thereof into
apartments, or the development of land into plots or apartment, as the case may
be, for the purpose of selling all or some of the said apartments or plots or
building, as the case may be, and includes the common areas, the development
works, all improvements and structures thereon, and all easement, rights and
appurtenances belonging thereto;
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