TGRERA imposes 13.74 lakh penalty on Hyderabad builder for using improper agreement of sale

A builder who used an agreement of sale which was different from the one he submitted to the TGRERA, while registering the building, was ordered to pay penalty

Hyderabad: The Telangana State Real Estate Regulatory Authority (TGRERA) has imposed a fine of rs 13,74, 436 on a builder for not using the stipulated format of the Agreement of Sale, while selling an apartment and also for not registering the Agreement of Sale.

The fines were imposed for violation of section 13 under section 61 and also for violation of Section 4 read with Section 60 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016.

The order was delivered by the three-member panel led by Chairman Dr N Satyanarayana and members K Srinivasa Rao and Laxmi Narayana Jannu in complaint No 158 of 2024.

The complainant Veluri Adi Lakshmi approached the TGRERA against the builder Vineela Arani, who was constructing a stilt plus five storied building at Park Avenue in Kondapur of Serilingampally mandal.

The complainant had planned to buy a flat on the fifth floor for price of Rs 1,14,32,000 and had paid Rs 63,45,000 on different dates. She complained to the authority that the builder was not registering the apartment and alleged that the builder was demanding additional money citing escalation of price.

However, the complainant had agreed to withdraw from the project and the builder had returned the money, except for Rs 95,000 which was the ‘booking amount’. The Authority also ruled that the complainant was not entitled to the return of ‘booking amount’, when the cancellation is made at the behest of the buyer.

Here are the two rule violations by the builder, which attracted the penalties.

1. The authority ruled that the Agreement of Sale (AOS) should be ‘verbatim same’ as that of the draft agreement of sale submitted by the builder to Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) at the time of registration of the project, under Rule 38. In the current case, the authority found that the builder used a completely different Agreement of Sale in contravention of the Rule 38.
2. The Agreement of Sale entered with the complainant on 25-01-2024 was not registered by the respondent (builder) which is in violation of Section 13 which mandates to register the Agreement of Sale as and when the same is executed.

The builder was ordered to pay the total of Rs 13,74,436 within 30 days to the RERA fund. Further the builder was or directed to strictly comply and execute the Agreement of Sale as is submitted and filed on the project website. The authority warned that any violation of this could attract penalty under Section 63 of the Act.