Thaindian News

New Delhi, Sep 24 (IANS) A Delhi court Wednesday directed Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to pay compensation in two different cases — for delay in possession to allottee and cancellation of flat to another.The Delhi Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, presided by Justice J.D. Kapoor, observed that no service provider like DDA or any private builder can refuse handing over of possession of a flat or plot once the basic cost or the actual cost of the flat or plot had been taken by it.

Depriving a person possession of the flat after receiving the entire cost of the flat amounts to grossest kind of deficiency as no person can be deprived of the shelter which he booked with his whole life earning, the Commission noted.

In one case, Vas Dev had registered himself with the DDA in 1979 for allotment of a flat and had later requested for conversion of the flat from MIG (middle-income group) to SFS (self-financing scheme) category.

His request was acceded to with the information that the transfer of registration money from MIG to SFS shall be worked out by the Superintendent in due course — but no such communication was ever sent.

This conduct of the DDA was held to be “grossest kind of deficiency in service” by the commission and DDA was ordered to pay a compensation of Rs.200,000 for not sending the communication at the proper address available on the records — which was a changed address as the allottee had gone abroad.

DDA also failed to intimate him about the date of payment to be made. As a result, the allottee has been waiting for 10 longs years for the flat — and now no more flats are available for allotment.

In another case, a retired government servant Makhan Lal Bhat was allotted an MIG flat at Jehangirpuri, against a registration made in 1979, and in spite of having requested for issuance of a revised original demand-cum-allotment letter and analysis of the disposal cost of Rs.757,950, he received only an unsigned conveyance deed form issued in 1988.

Justice Kapoor further observed that possession of a flat has to be delivered on the receipt of the actual cost as by not handing over possession the service provider makes the consumer suffer immense mental agony, emotional suffering, harassment and heavy financial loss.

For delayed delivery of possession, DDA has been directed to pay compensation of Rs.100,000 for mental agony, harassment and loss suffered by the consumer.