CHEMBUR BUYER WINS POSSESSION ORDER AFTER FIVE-YEAR WAIT

A five-year-old possession dispute at Vardhan Heights in Chembur has been resolved in the homebuyer's favour, in an order that reaffirms a settled MahaRERA position: a pending civil suit, without an injunction actually restraining the project, is not by itself a defence against statutory possession and interest obligations. MahaRERA Member II Ravindra Deshpande, in an order dated 23 July 2026, partly allowed the complaint filed by Narendra Pandurang Kadam against Vardhan Housing over Flat No. 310 in Vardhan Heights, Chembur. The Authority directed possession within 30 days along with interest for delay under Section 18 of the RERA Act, 2016. The complainant had booked the flat in 2019 with possession originally due in 2021; by the date of this order, the delay stood at nearly five years beyond the agreed date. The developer had pointed to a pending civil suit and to Covid-19 as grounds for delay. MahaRERA held that mere pendency of litigation, without a stay or injunction affecting the project, cannot by itself excuse delayed possession. Force majeure relief applied only to the recognised Covid window of 14 March to 15 September 2020 — not the full disruption period the developer sought. The Authority's reasoning tracks a now-settled MahaRERA position that a civil suit is not, by itself, a legal impediment unless it is coupled with an order actually restraining construction or possession. The project's Occupation Certificate was obtained on 16 September 2025 after the project reached completion in 2022 and fit-out possession was offered to some allottees. The Authority found the developer had not shown that the civil suit restrained construction or actually prevented completion. Interest for the delay period was directed at the State Bank of India's Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate plus 2 per cent, the standard formula prescribed under the RERA Rules for such awards, calculated from the originally agreed possession date until actual handover.

चेंबूरच्या वर्धन हाइट्समधील पाच वर्षे जुना ताबा वाद ग्राहकाच्या बाजूने निकाली निघाला आहे. या आदेशाने महारेराची प्रस्थापित भूमिका पुन्हा अधोरेखित केली — प्रकल्पाला प्रत्यक्ष रोखणारा मनाई हुकूम नसेल, तर केवळ प्रलंबित दावा ताबा व व्याजाच्या कायदेशीर जबाबदारीविरोधात बचाव ठरत नाही. महारेराचे सदस्य द्वितीय रवींद्र देशपांडे यांनी २३ जुलै २०२६ च्या आदेशान्वये नरेंद्र पांडुरंग कदम यांची वर्धन हाऊसिंगविरुद्धची तक्रार अंशतः मान्य केली. वर्धन हाइट्स, चेंबूर येथील फ्लॅट क्र. ३१० चा ताबा ३० दिवसांत देण्याचे व कलम १८ अंतर्गत विलंब व्याज देण्याचे निर्देश देण्यात आले. तक्रारदाराने २०१९ मध्ये सदनिका बुक केली होती व मूळ ताबा तारीख २०२१ होती; या आदेशापर्यंत विलंब जवळपास पाच वर्षांचा झाला होता. विकासकाने प्रलंबित दिवाणी दावा व कोविड-१९ चा हवाला दिला. महारेराने स्पष्ट केले की स्थगिती वा मनाई हुकूम नसताना केवळ दावा प्रलंबित असणे विलंबाचे समर्थन ठरत नाही. कोविड सवलत केवळ १४ मार्च ते १५ सप्टेंबर २०२० या मान्यताप्राप्त कालावधीपुरतीच मंजूर करण्यात आली. विलंब कालावधीसाठी SBI च्या MCLR दरात २ टक्के भर घालून व्याज देण्याचे निर्देश देण्यात आले — RERA नियमांतर्गत अशा प्रकरणांसाठीचे प्रमाणित सूत्र, मूळ ताबा तारखेपासून प्रत्यक्ष हस्तांतरणापर्यंत मोजले जाते.