Court makes Lodha Group pay Rs 1.02 crore to senior citizens

Local Press Co 5-point Snippet

1. The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has ordered Lodha Group, one of Mumbai’s top realtors, to pay an elderly couple Rs. 1.02 crore for ‘arbitrarily’ canceling an apartment they had booked in Thane.

2. In addition, the NCDRC has also asked the realtor to pay an 18 percent interest on the principal amount it ‘illegally withheld’ from the couple since 2010 and Rs 1 lakh as compensation.

3. Dr Naren Sheth and Dr Sudha Sheth took the construction group to court because they ‘illegally’ demanded additional amount of Rs 3 lakhs for car parking. The builder had cancelled their allotment in June 2011 and then hurriedly sold off the apartment to another buyer in July 2011, a month before the couple filed their complaint at the NCDRC.

4. The commission hearing the case stated, “The sale agreement had made it clear that the buyers were entitled to two car parks. The complainants were not bound to pay the double amount for car parking. They should have been warned and a notice should have been sent before cancelling the flat. This shows the arbitrary, high-handed, arrogant, despotic and capricious character of OP2”. The OP2 (opposite party 2) in the statement refers to Shree Sainath Enterprises, a division of the Lodha Group, while the parent company itself has been listed as Opposite Party (OP1) in the complaint.

5. The order passed by Justice J M Malik and Dr S M Kantikar also pronounced that the builder produced ‘completely arbitrary’ allotment letter on January 17, 2011 and made a reference of executing an interim arrangement, which is illegal. The order also said that as per the law, a builder cannot demand additional amount for parking. Further adding that the builder went on accepting a lion’s share towards the construction, delivery and possession of the flat, but did not execute the agreement to sell.