Ranga Reddy: SuchirIndia Developers fined Rs 13 lakhs for 16-year delay in plot layout registration

Hyderabad: District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Ranga Reddy, has directed SuchirIndia Developers Pvt. Ltd. to refund Rs 8,16,000 (along with 9 per cent interest per annum from January 10, 2008, till the date of realisation) to a complaint. The real estate company failed to obtain the final layout and register the plot in favour of the complainant even after 16 years.

It also directed the firm to pay Rs 5 lakhs towards damages and Rs 20,000 to the complainant.

Case details

Amit Bajpai is a resident of Nacharam in Hyderabad. After going through the advertisements of SuchirIndia Developers’s residential plot/property under the name ‘Koral Reef’ Gated Community in Turkapally Village, near Shamirpet, Bajpai entered into an agreement of sale with the real estate firm with respect to plot No 136, measuring 240 sq yards in the said community.

The sale consideration is fixed at Rs 8.16 lakhs i.e., Rs 3,400 per sqyds. Bajpai opted for an outright payment scheme and paid the entire sale consideration to the real estate firm in respect of plot No 136 which the firm acknowledges in the Agreement of Sale on January 10, 2008. As per the Agreement of Sale, it is the primary or bounden duty of the real estate firm to obtain the final layout and register the plot in favour of the complainant.

After receiving the entire sale consideration, the SuchirIndia Developers assured Bajpai that the approved layout would be procured at the earliest and registration would be done as per the approved layout. However, the real estate firm kept changing the officials in the customer relations department and whenever Bajpai contacted the real estate firm officials concerning layout as well as registration of layout, the said officials used to evade the answers by giving one pretext or another, tactics that the real estate firm employs to harass its customers.

Complainant writes to HMDA

Vexed with the attitude of the SuchirIndia Developers, Bajpai through his counsel filed an application on September 7, 2021, before the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA), under the provisions of the Right to Information Act, 2005 to know the status of the layout. From the information provided by the HMDA, the layout is still a draft/proposed layout and the final layout is yet to be obtained by the SuchirIndia Developers.

SuchirIndia Developers promoted the venture ‘Koral Reef’ by advertising that the gated community is near to Biotech Hub, Special Economic Zone and BITS Hyderabad Campus to attract customers. They also advertised themselves as India’s First ISO-9001 (ISO 14001-2004). However, the real estate firm has not taken any steps with respect to obtaining the final layout and the project site is not yet developed in spite of taking substantial amounts from various customers including Bajpai.

On October 22, 2021, Bajpai sent a legal notice to the SuchirIndia Developers. In its written version, it had stated that the present complaint is not maintainable either in law or on facts and the complainant paid the amount in the year 2008 and the agreement of sale was executed on January 10, 2008. SuchirIndia has launched many such projects successfully and made itself a marking presence in the reality market. After obtaining approvals of layouts and permissions from the concerned competent authorities, the developmental work has been started and it is ongoing.

After having detailed discussions and enquiry and upon satisfying themselves in all respects and by accepting the terms and conditions of the venture, agreed to enter as members of the scheme for the said venture and booked one plot in his name admeasuring 240 sqyds each and agreed to pay total sale consideration of Rs 8.16 lakhs to the SuchirIndia Developers. The SuchirIndia Developers were always ready to register the plot in favour of the complainant but the complainant did not come forward for registration. The delay in registration of the plot is caused only because of the complainant herein.

After hearing the arguments from both parties, the commission noted that Bajpai paid Rs 8.16 lakhs in 2008 towards the plot admeasuring 240 sqyards in the year 2008 but after a lapse of 16 years also, he could not get the residential plot due to the unfair trade practice of SuchirIndia Developers. If the complainant invested his money in any other venture, definitely his property value would have increased in multiples, but due to the inaction of the real estate firm, Bajpai remained empty-handed to date.

The commission held this point in favour of the complainant and Bajpai is entitled to receive the reliefs awarded accordingly.