VENKATARAMAN KRISHNAMURTHY Vs. LODHA CROWN BUILDMART PVT. LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, New Delhi (in short, 'NCDRC'), decided Consumer Complaint No. 35 of 2018, vide order dtd. 9/11/2022. Disgruntled with the said order, the complainants therein preferred this statutory appeal.

(2.) The appellants intended to purchase an apartment in a building to be constructed by the respondent-company at New Cuffe Parade, Wadala, Mumbai. The parties executed Agreement to Sell dtd. 29/11/2013 (hereinafter, 'the Agreement'), whereby the 4BHK apartment bearing No. B-602, on the sixth floor of the proposed building named 'Lodha Evoq', with a carpet area of 1966 sq. ft. was allotted to the appellants. The sale consideration was fixed at Rs.7,55,50,956.00. As per the payment schedule, this sale consideration was to be paid in four sets of application money, viz., Rs.18,00,000.00, Rs.57,55,096.00, Rs.74,79,545.00 and Rs.21,62,700.00 respectively, and the balance amount, being Rs.5,83,53,615.00, was to be paid on initiation of fit outs. It is not in dispute that the appellants paid Rs.2,25,31,148.00 in all to the respondent-company by the date of institution of their consumer complaint before the NCDRC and were not in default. As per the Agreement, possession of the apartment was to be delivered to the appellants for fit outs by 30/6/2016 or, with a grace period of one year, by 30/6/2017. Alleging that the respondent-company had not delivered possession of the apartment for fit outs by the said date and that they had terminated the Agreement, the appellants approached the NCDRC. Their prayer was for refund of the amount paid by them with compound interest thereon @ 18% p.a. along with compensation for the harassment, mental agony and torture suffered by them, apart from litigation costs.

(3.) By the impugned order dtd. 9/11/2022, the NCDRC disposed of the appellant's consumer complaint with the following directions: -