MOHALI: A Mohali consumer commission has directed a real estate developer to pay 9% annual interest on a homebuyer’s deposited amount of Rs 42.13 lakh over delays in handing over an apartment, while also ordering it to rectify construction defects, refund illegal maintenance charges and restore the buyer’s original parking space.The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Mohali, also directed the developer to obtain the required occupation and completion certificates from the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) and provide the basic amenities promised in its brochure. The developer and its management have been given three months from receiving the order to comply with the directions.The complainant had purchased a 1,050 sq ft, two-bedroom apartment in Sector 66-A through a re-allotment letter dated June 30, 2021.The project was originally scheduled for completion within 36 months, by July 30, 2018. However, possession was offered only in December 2022.The buyer took possession on March 10, 2023, after paying a final balance of Rs 2,40,153, citing financial pressure. After moving into the apartment, the complainant found that several promises made in the developer’s brochure had not been fulfilled. The buyer also objected to the division of a single-car parking bay into smaller spaces.The complaint further raised concerns about construction dust, which the buyer said aggravated his bronchitis. The developer had also failed to obtain occupation and completion certificates from GMADA.The commission observed that handing over keys to a homebuyer without the requisite statutory certificates does not amount to a valid offer of possession. Citing precedents set by the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), it held that builders cannot charge maintenance fees before obtaining completion certificates.The commission also observed that promises made in promotional brochures form an integral part of the service contract between a developer and a homebuyer.On the parking dispute, the bench examined photographic evidence showing the reduced space and noted that the developer had failed to produce a sanctioned parking plan to justify dividing the original bay. It directed the developer to restore and provide the homebuyer with the original, uncompromised parking space.The commission partly allowed the complaint and directed the developer to pay 9% annual interest on the total deposited amount of Rs 42,13,678. The interest is to be calculated from the originally promised date of possession until the final completion certificate is obtained.The developer was also directed to pay Rs 75,000 as compensation for mental agony, harassment and litigation expenses, in addition to rectifying the construction defects, providing the amenities promised in the brochure and refunding maintenance charges levied illegally.
