Case Law Details
Praveen Chhabra Vs Real Estate Appellate Tribunal (Delhi High Court)
Facts- The petitioner had challenged the order passed by the Real Estate Appellate Tribunal dated November 24, 2021. As per the order, the Delhi Real Estate Appellate Tribunal had stayed all the construction activities, including residential and commercial activities, in the national capital that were undertaken without complying with the mandatory obligation of registering the project with the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) till the project was registered with the authority.
The petitioner has approached this Court aggrieved by the fact that he has been informed by the appropriate development authorities that the plans as submitted cannot be accorded approval in light of the orders passed by the Appellate Tribunal.
Conclusion- Held that the Appellate Tribunal direction vide order dated 24th November 2021 restrained all the construction activity, be it residential or commercial, in the NCT of Delhi. The direction was to cover all projects which had failed to register in terms of the provisions contained in Section 3(2) of the Act. The Court notes that Section 3(1) prescribes that no promoter shall advertise, sell or offer to sell, or invite persons to purchase any plot, apartment or building in any real estate project which is not registered under the Act. The first proviso to Section 3(1) then stipulates that in case of ongoing projects which are under different stages of implementation on the date of commencement of the Act and in respect of which a completion certificate may not have been issued, would also require to be registered within three months from the date of commencement of the Act. Section 3(2) is an exemption provision and specifies projects which may not require registration under the Act.
It would be relevant to note that the Act came into force on 26 March As this Court views Section 3, it is manifest that the same would principally apply to projects which may commence thereafter. In light of the mandate of Section 3(1) and insofar as ongoing projects are concerned, they would stand governed by its first Proviso. Similarly, Section 3(2) specifies the various contingencies in which a real estate project may be exempted from the requirement of compulsory registration under the Act. The provisions of Section 3 clearly indicate that the requirement of registration is one which necessarily merits an enquiry and examination of the facts of each real estate project before the Authority or the Appellate Tribunal may come to conclude that registration is mandated.
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