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M/S Imperia Structures Ltd. v. Anil Patni and Anr. Etc.

Civil Appeal · 2020 INSC 625Decided 2 Nov 2020
Civil Appeal Nos. 3581-3590 of 2020
Justice Uday Umesh Lalit · Justice Vineet Saran

Background

Buyers had booked apartments in a Gurgaon housing project ("The ESFERA") developed by Imperia Structures, paying substantial amounts under builder-buyer agreements that promised possession within three years (extendable). When possession was significantly delayed, the buyers filed consumer complaints before the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) seeking refund of their money with interest, instead of waiting indefinitely for possession. The NCDRC ruled in the buyers' favour, and the builder appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing among other things that with the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA) now in force, the consumer forum should not have entertained the complaints.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that remedies under the Consumer Protection Act and under RERA are concurrent, not mutually exclusive: RERA does not oust the jurisdiction of consumer fora, and Section 79 of RERA (which bars civil courts) does not extend to consumer commissions, which are not civil courts. It held that an allottee who is denied timely possession is entitled to seek a refund with interest under general principles, and that filing before the consumer forum rather than RERA was legitimate. On facts, since the project was significantly delayed beyond the promised and even extended timelines, the builder's justifications were rejected and the buyers' entitlement to refund with interest was upheld. The appeals were dismissed, with an additional cost of Rs. 50,000 per case imposed on the builder.

Lesson Learnt

Homebuyers facing unreasonably delayed possession are not confined to RERA alone: they can still approach consumer protection forums for a refund with interest, since the existence of RERA does not take away consumer-law remedies for builder delay or default.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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