Section 14 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act which stipulates “Adherence to sanctioned plans and project specification by the promoter” requires that the proposed project shall be developed and completed by the promoter in accordance with the sanctioned plans, layout plans and specifications as approved by the competent authorities.
One of the main aspects of Section 14 is that a promoter, notwithstanding anything contained in any law, contract or agreement, after the sanctioned plans, layout plans and specifications and the nature of the fixtures, fittings, amenities and common areas, of the apartment, plot or building, as the case may be, as approved by the competent authority, are disclosed or furnished to the person who agrees to take one or more of the said apartment, plot or building, as the case may be, the promoter shall not make any additions and alterations in the sanctioned plans, layout plans and specifications and the nature of fixtures, fittings and amenities described therein in respect of the apartment, plot or building, as the case may be, which are agreed to be taken, without the previous consent of that person, provided that the promoter may make such minor additions or alterations as may be required by the allottee, or such minor changes or alterations as may be necessary due to architectural and structural reasons duly recommended and verified by an authorized Architect or Engineer after proper declaration and intimation to the allottee.
The Explanation to Section 14(1) provides for exclusions and states- “minor additions or alterations” excludes structural change including an addition to the area or change in height, or the removal of part of a building, or any change to the structure, such as the construction or removal or cutting into of any wall or a part of a wall, partition, column, beam, joist, floor including a mezzanine floor or other support, or a change to or closing of any required means of access ingress or egress or a change to the fixtures or equipment, etc., are excluded from the minor additions and alterations.
When dealing with minor additions and alterations in respect of a particular apartment, plot or building, it is mandated that notwithstanding anything contained in any law, contract or agreement, once the plans are disclosed to an allottee who has agreed to take an apartment, plot or building, the promoter is not permitted to make even minor changes or alterations other than those which are excluded, without the previous consent of the allottee to whom such an apartment, plot or building has been allotted. Even in the case of an addition or alteration becoming necessary due to architectural or structural reasons, the promoter is required to make a proper declaration and intimate the allottee before proceedings to make such changes and such changes should have been duly recommended and verified by an authorized architect or engineer. What this implies is that even to make minor additions, alternations in an individual unit, the promoter must take previous consent of the allottee before proceeding to make such changes.
Section 14(2)(ii) deals with alternations or additions in the sanctioned plan, layout plans or specifications of the building or the common areas within the “PROJECT” and stipulates that notwithstanding anything contained in any law, contract or agreement, once the plans are disclosed to an allottee who has agreed to take an apartment, plot or building no modifications to the sanctioned plans can be made without the previous written consent of at least 2/3rd of the allottees other than the promoter, who have agreed to take apartments in such building. The mandate under this provision requires that a promoter, after having disclosed or furnished to the persons who have agreed to take one or more apartment, plots or buildings in a project, if any alterations or additions other than minor additions or alterations to an individual unit, are required to be made in the sanctioned plan, layout plan and specifications of the buildings or common areas within the entire project, the promoter shall obtain consent from atleast 2/3rd of the allottees in the project before proceeding to make such alterations or additions in the sanctioned plans.
Sanctioned plans are defined in Section 2(zq) which reads as follows –
“Sanctioned plan” means the site plan, service plan, building plan, parking and circulation plan, landscape plan, layout plan, zoning plan, and such other plan and includes structural designs, if applicable, permissions such as environment permission and such other permissions, which are approved by the competent authority prior to start of a real estate project.”
From a conjoint reading of Section 14(2)(ii) and Section 2(zq), it can be said that once a promoter discloses or furnishes to the allottee the sanctioned plan, layout plan and specifications of the buildings or the common areas within the project, if any alterations or additions are required to be made in the sanctioned plan which is defined under Section 2(zq), which not only includes all the plans including structural designed if applicable and permissions such as environmental permissions and such other permissions which are approved by the competent authority prior to start of a real estate project, the promoter would mandatorily have to obtain 2/3rd consent of the allottees. The definition of sanctioned plan has to be taken into account to determine what is included and it can be said that it includes all plans and permissions for a real estate project which are necessary for the development of the project without any exclusions whatsoever, other than those provided in the explanation to Section 14(1)(i).
The general practice which was used to be followed hitherto by promoters of reserving liberty to modify the sanctioned plan cannot now be utilized or relied upon by the promoters to make any modifications, be it minor or other modifications to sanctioned plans without adhering to the provisions of Section 14 of the RERA Act. Even if such a liberty to modify unilaterally is reserved under the Agreement or any other document, Section 14(2) will override such a reservation.
In case of violation of the provisions of Section 14, not only does the allottee get a right to seek compensation under the Act by filing a complaint under Section 31 before the Adjudicating Officer, but also take recourse under Section 35 by filing a complaint before the Rear Estate Regulatory Authority seeking appropriate reliefs, including the relief of undoing such modifications which may have been carried unilaterally without adhering to the mandate under section 14 of taking consent of the allottees. It is hence essential for a promoter to understand that once the allotments are made and the sanctioned plans are disclosed to the allottees in case of any modifications to be done either in the individual unit or in the entire project, it is mandatory that the consent of the allottees be obtained as provided for in the Act. This will also be the case where the project has been registered in phases.
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