PUNE: Holding a developer guilty of unfair trade practice and deficiency in service, the Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Pune, has directed Shree Balaji Developers to refund ₹2.36 lakh to a disabled consumer who had booked a plot in a subsequently cancelled project. The commission also ordered the developer to pay 9% annual interest on the amount, ₹25,000 as compensation for mental agony and ₹15,000 towards litigation costs.
The order was passed by a bench comprising Arun R Gaikwad (president) and members Kanchan S Gangadhare and Pranali Sawant in a complaint filed by Madhusudan Pralhad Joshi against the developer. The complaint was filed on April 26, 2024, and a copy of the judgment was made available on August 7.
According to the complaint, Joshi, a person with disabilities, had booked an 11-guntha plot in the developer’s Konkan Vaibhav project in October 2020. Between October 2020 and July 2021, he paid a total of ₹3.01 lakh towards the purchase. However, the project was subsequently cancelled. The developer refunded only ₹65,000, leaving ₹2.36 lakh unpaid.
The complainant told the commission that despite repeated follow-ups, legal notices and a memorandum of understanding (MOU) executed between the parties, the developer failed to honour its commitment to refund the outstanding amount.
