BHUBANESWAR DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY Vs. BASANT KUMAR DASH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Complainant and the Opposite Party Housing Authority before the State Commission have filed these Appeals against the judgment and order dated 16.10.07 passed by the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Odisha (in short, the State Commission) in C.D Case No. 3/02 whereby the State Commission partly allowing the complaint has directed the Housing Authority to pay interest @ 9% p.a. on amount of Rs. 1,00,000/- deposited by the Complainant under the Baramunda Housing Scheme for the period from May, 1995 to 26.04.97. State Commission has also directed the Housing Authority to hand over the possession of the House No.279 allotted under the Kalinga Vihar Housing Scheme to the Complainant on his depositing the sum of Rs. 21,474.90 towards the outstanding installment. Facts:-

(2.) In response to an advertisement published by the Bhubaneswar Development Authority - Appellant in First Appeal, No.760/07 and Respondent in FA No. 477/12 (hereinafter referred to the "Housing Authority") floating self-financing core housing scheme at Kalinga Vihar, Bhubaneswar, the Complainant "- Appellant in First Appeal 477/12 and Respondent in First Appeal No. 760/07 - (hereinafter referred to as "the Complainant"-) applied for allotment of a house and deposited Rs. 25,000/- with the Housing Authority. On 04.07.94, the Housing Authority provisionally allotted a HIG Core House and the Complainant deposited a sum of Rs. 1,00,000/- with it. Vide letter dated 11.06.98, the Housing Authority allotted house No.279 to the Complainant in the Kalinga Vihar Scheme. Complainant requested the Housing Authority for allotment of an alternative house as the house no.279 was not raised even upto the plinth level. The said request was turned down by the Housing Authority.

(3.) In April, 1995, Complainant applied for allotment of one HIG Duplex House under the Baramunda Scheme and deposited the sum of Rs. 1,00,000/- with the Housing Authority. Since the amount of Rs. 1,00,000/- was deposited by the Complainant without inviting any application by the Housing Authority, the same was refunded to him by the Housing Authority after two years without any interest. Cut-off date for delivery of the house under the Kalinga Vihar Scheme was 04.01.96 but the Housing Authority failed to hand over the possession. Complainant, being aggrieved, filed the complaint before the State Commission seeking a direction to the Housing Authority to hand over the physical possession of the house No.279 under Kalinga Vihar Self Financing HIG Core Housing Scheme and to pay a compensation of Rs. 14,00,000/-.