DELHI DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY Vs. GEETA RANI GOEL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This revision petition has been filed against the judgment and orders passed by the District Forum and the State Commission by the Opposite Party in that fora.

(2.) The brief facts of the case are that the Delhi Development Authority the petitioner in this case had issued an allotment letter dated 22.12.1997 to the Respondent in response to her application for registration of a flat under the Janata Housing Registration Scheme 1996 DDA. She was offered a ready built flat No. 100-B, First Floor in Kondli Gharoli, New Delhi. The offer of allotment letter issued on 22.12.1997 31.12.1997 laid down the schedule for payments to be made by the Respondent along with stipulated dates and details of automatic cancellation in case of failure to do so. Respondent deposited the confirmation money of Rs.10,000/- on 16.10.1998 and agreed to pay the required money within the stipulated period vide letter which was received from her by DDA on 19.01.1998. On 12.05.1998 the Respondent through a Registered AD requested the petitioner to permit her to pay the remaining money amounting to Rs.1,55,500/- in four installments over a period of two years. Vide letter dated 11.06.1998 the Petitioner rejected the request of the Respondent and advised her that she could make the payment with interest by taking loan from financial institutions for which 2-3 months time could be granted. According to the Petitioner, the Respondent did not respond to the letter. She was therefore issued a show cause notice on 17.06.1998, as to why the allotment should not be cancelled on account of breach of terms of allotment. On receiving no response to this show cause notice, the Respondent's allotment was cancelled on 04.08.1998 as per the conditions of the allotment letter according to which the last date for payment on 30.05.1998 was over.

(3.) The Respondent's contention is that due to her own and her husband's ill health she could not make the payments in time. It was because of this that she sent a letter through Registered A D on 12.05.1998 to the Petitioner asking time to make the payments in installments over a two year period. In response to this request, the DDA gave her three months time till 30.08.1998 to make the payments with interest. Respondent immediately sent a letter of acceptance to the Petitioner Under Certificate of Posting (UPC) dated 18.06.1998 and intimated action to raise the money through loans to make the remaining payment. However, before she could complete the process she was shocked to receive a letter from the Petitioner dated 04.08.1998 that her allotment had been cancelled. She never received any show-cause notice prior to the letter of cancellation. Aggrieved by this arbitrary action she moved the District Forum to seeking the following relief :