No Occupation Certificate Means No Valid Possession: Haryana RERA Directs Ansal Housing To Refund Homebuyer

A coram comprising Arun Kumar (Chairman) observed that:

“There is a delay in handing over the possession as due date of possession was 07.11.2015 whereas, the respondent has failed to obtain the occupation certificate from the concerned authorities till date.”

Homebuyers booked a flat in the builder's “Estella” project at Sector 103, Gurugram, after being approached by the builder's representatives in 2011. Pursuant to the booking, Unit No. L-0401 in Tower-L having a super area of 1,945 sq. ft. was allotted to them. The Buyer Agreement was executed on May 7, 2012 for a total sale consideration of Rs 77.09 lakh.

According to the homebuyers, they paid Rs. 77.99 lakh towards the unit and did not default in making payments. Under the Buyer's Agreement, possession was to be handed over within 36 months along with an additional six-month grace period.

Homebuyers contended that despite the lapse of nearly 10 years from the promised possession date, builder failed to offer valid possession of the unit. They further contended that the offer of possession made on 10 October 2024 was invalid as it had been made before receipt of the occupation certificate.

Homebuyers also challenged some of the demands made by the builder such as charges for external electrification and other amounts that were allegedly not payable by them.

Aggrieved by the prolonged delay and alleging that the project remained incomplete, the homebuyers approached authority seeking refund of the amount paid along with interest.

Haryana RERA observed that under the Buyer Agreement possession of the flat was to be handed over by November 7, 2015 after accounting for the contractual grace period. However, the builder had failed to obtain the Occupation Certificate even after the lapse of almost ten years from the due date of possession.

The authority noted that the homebuyers had paid more than the entire sale consideration for the unit. Despite this builder issued an offer of possession for fit-outs in October 2024 without obtaining the occupation certificate and simultaneously raised additional demands.

Referring to settled law, authority held that a valid offer of possession can be made only after obtaining the Occupation Certificate. It therefore found the possession offer issued by the builder to be premature and invalid.

Taking note of the prolonged delay and the builder's failure to secure the Occupation Certificate, the Authority held that the homebuyers were justified in seeking withdrawal from the project and refund of the amount paid.

Accordingly, Haryana RERA directed the builder to refund Rs 77,35,781 to the homebuyers along with interest at the rate of 10.80% per annum from the date of each payment until realization.

The authority granted 90 days for compliance with the order. It also directed its planning branch to take appropriate action against the builder for operating an unregistered project in violation of the RERA Act.

For Complainant: Garvit Gupta

For Respondent: Amandeep Kadyan