NEW LAW COLLEGE

BHARATI VIDHYAPEETH UNIVERSITY, PUNE

ASSIGNMENT OF LAW OF INFRASTRUCTURAL

DEVELOPMENT
SUBMITTED BY – VIPIN MALVIYA
ROLL NO. – B-03
DIVISION- B
CLASS – B.B.A. LL.B. (5TH YEAR)
APPILICABILTY OF CONSUMER PROTECTION ON
HOUSING AND RERA AND THEIR INTERPLAY

“The interest of the consumer has to be kept in the forefront and the prime
consideration that an essential commodity ought to be made available to the
common man at a fair price must rank in priority over every other
consideration.” - Y.V. Chandrachud, J.1

INTRODUCTION
The Consumer Protection Act, which came into effect in 1986, provides for easy
and speedy redressal of consumer complaints. It protects and encourages
consumers to protest against crunches and blights in goods and services. When
dealers and manufacturers engage in illegal trade, this law protects their rights as
consumers. The main motive of this forum is to help both parties and exclude
lengthy action. This protection law covers all public, private, or collaborative
goods and services except those exempted by the state. The Act provides a
platform for the consumer to lodge a complaint and the forum will act against the
concerned supplier and the consumer will be compensated for the problems
caused. The real estate sector in India is one of the largest sectors in India and
accounts for a significant portion of the country's GDP. The real estate sector
consists of domestic, marketable, retail, artificial and indispensable parcels
(seminaries, hospitals, golf courses and hospices,etc.). Due to rapid-fire growth
over the last two decades, the assiduity is still largely unorganized. presently,
there's no nonsupervisory body leading the field and no corresponding legislation
(offer law-Real Estate Regulation and Development Act, 2013). The utmost
consumer complaints in this sector are presently covered by the Consumer
Protection Act 1986. still, there’s presently a tone-nonsupervisory body called

1
in Prag Ice & Oil Mills v. Union of India, (1978) 3 SCC 459...
CREDAI(Real Estate Developers Association of India) whose charge is to make
the assiduity more systematized and progressive.

REGULATORY BODY IN HOUSING SECTOR

In the case Belaire Owner’s Association vs. DLF Ltd2, the Competition
Commission said that “The absence of any single sectoral controller to regulate the
real estate sector in summation, so as to insure relinquishment of transparent and
ethical business practices and cover the consumers, has only made the situation in
the real estate sector worse. ” 3
With the high position of vulnerability and threat involved, and with the lack of
a nonsupervisory frame, it becomes all the more necessary to extend to the
consumers legal protection against the malpractices by real estate agents.
Primarily, there are 3 reasons for the necessity of Consumer Protection in real
estate assiduity.
I. There's a large quantum of plutocrats involved in real estate. Thus, abuse by
consumers would bring them great detriment. On the other hand, consumer
protection would bring numerous benefits to consumers and is in their interest
and in the interests of other businesses involved in the sector.
II. The real estate assiduity is" controlled" by real estate agents. When
governments formulate programs to ameliorate real estate assiduity, they ask the
people who represent real estate agents. They infrequently ask people who
represent consumers. Accordingly, consumers have no say-so in shaping the
programs that regulate the assiduity. The real estate assiduity is failing not only
consumers, but also governments.
III. Consumers warrant knowledge. Their exploitation is also caused by
consumers' lack of knowledge and information about the sector. They're
misinformed, deceived, and frequently lose large totalities of plutocrat to
fraudsters due to lack of information.

2
2011 CompLR 0239 (CCI)
3
http://www.epw.in/system/files/pdf/2014_49_25/Legislation_for_Real_Estate_Sector.pdf
BENEFITS TO THE HOUSING SECTORS FROM THE
CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT
UNFAIR CONTRACT
The new Consumer Protection Law 2019 has easily added the conception of
illegal contracts as defined in section 2(46) as needed contracts, which includes
contracts that favor manufacturers or suppliers and are against the interests of
consumers. inordinate guarantees that the consumer must take care of the
fulfillment of contractual scores, in which the consumer is subject to a penalty
for the denial of a contract that's fully disproportionate to the damage caused to
the other constricting party by the violation, turndown to accept early
prepayment of debts in payment of the applicable late payment, the right of the
contractor unilaterally to terminate without reasonable cause, which allows or
has the possibility to transfer the contract to the detriment of the other party. is a
consumer without his concurrence; and imposes unreasonable burdens, scores
or conditions on the consumer that place the consumer at a disadvantage.
PRODUCT LIABILITY
Another important addition to the 2019 Act is the conception of product
liability, which includes the product manufacturer, product service provider and
product dealer in implicit compensation claims. Product liability is defined in
this law as the obligation of the dealer of the product or the manufacturer of the
product, any service related to the product, or the product to compensate the
consumer for damage caused by a imperfect product that was manufactured or
vended. or the lack of services related to the product. still, according to the new
law, there are some exceptions to the liability conditions, similar as the fact that
the dealer of the product isn't responsible for abuse, revision, or revision of the
product.
TERRITORIAL JURISDICTION
The new Law on Consumer Protection now provides fresh benefits to
consumers by furnishing for a complaint to be filed when the plaintiff is alive or
working for gain, compared to the former law that only handed for a complaint
to be filed when the opponent was alive. or engaged in business. The amended
provision would help exclude difficulties faced by consumers in redressal of
complaints against companies whose geographical position may not have an
office or branch.
CENTRAL CONSUMER PROTECTION AUTHRORITY
The new law introduces the Consumer Protection Agency (CCPA) established
by the central government. The CCPA is a nonsupervisory body and has the
power to put penalties, recall goods, bear cancellation of service, issue refunds
and probe matters. It's also responsible for guarding the rights of consumers as a
group and also ensures that no bonE engages in illegal business practices and
that no deceiving advertising is done. The law also provides for the
confirmation of an disquisition platoon headed by a director general appointed
by the central government to conduct the disquisition in agreement with the
vittles of the CCPA.

CONSUMER COURT AND HOMEBUYERS

With the establishment of the State Real Estate Regulatory Authority under the
Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, homebuyers now have a
dedicated forum to turn to if they have issues with developers. However, this
does not mean that home buyers cannot approach the consumer court for help.
This is because the definition of product sellers in the 2019 Act included
developers who can be sued for negligence in consumer courts. A product seller
is a person who sells completed houses or builds a house or apartment.
In 2020, the SC said this while hearing several complaints against Delhi-based
Imperial Structures- “On the strength of the law so declared, Section 79 of the
RERA Act doesn't in any way bar the(consumer) commission or forum under
the vittles of the Consumer Protection Act to entertain any complaint. The
administrative intent is clear that a choice or discretion is given to the allottee
whether he wishes to initiate applicable proceedings under the CP Act or train
an operation under the RERA Act,”
COMPLAINTS UNDER CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT FOR
HOUSING SECTOR
The consumer in the real estate sector is a consumer of services; hence any
complaint will be with respect to insufficiency in services and not for a
disfigurement in product( Section 2( c)( iii) of the Consumer Protection Act,
1986, ‘ Complaint ’ means any allegation made in jotting by a plaintiff that the
services hired or profited of or agreed to be hired or profited of by him suffer
from insufficiency in any respect). Depending on the value of services agreed
to be hired or profited by the consumer, any complaint of a insufficiency there
on will be made in front of the applicable forum (District, State or National
Consumer controversies Redressal Forum) Though at the veritably first look the
below system of disagreement redressal seems to be just and fair unfortunately
there are numerous underpinning problems which the consumer faces. The
consumer of this particular sector is more vulnerable due to the large quantum
of plutocrats involved and the lack of information (also misleading
announcements about colorful systems) that one has regarding the real estate
sector. The trends and prices in the real estate sector are substantially disposed
or fixed by the real estate agents who run this unorganized assiduity. Moving
ahead in the right direction, there's the proposed Real Estate (Regulation and
Development) Bill of 2013, which proposes the establishment of a Real Estate
Appellate Tribunal. This technical judicial body would deal specifically with
grievances of the real estate sector in a further effective and speedy manner,
giving the important demanded relief to the consumer. The present consumer
protection laws could also be amended by widening their compass to include
within its dimension irremovable property in their description of goods so that
real estate sector consumers can be well covered and defended. rather than
establishing new bars to deal with real estate cases, the being bars could be
given the important demanded governance to decide similar cases in a speedy
and effective manner. When we go to the other side of the diapason that's to the
inventor side, there are innumerous checks and obedience that one needs to gain
for the perpetration of any design. There are colorful bodies at state and public
position that need compliance from real estate systems, which if made simpler
and modest would give a breath of relief to the real estate inventor too. Any
arbitrariness in the law-making process should be avoided to circumvent any
penalty or compensation which would eventually be passed on to the consumer.
Still making emendations to the legal frame isn't the only way forward. The
 consumer needs to equip himself with the essential knowledge of the real estate
sector and be apprehensive of their rights and duties in order to help any kind of
exploitation.

SCOPE OF RERA
Under the “real estate nonsupervisory authority” board there's a strict time
frame for deciding the matter by appellate authority, but in “consumer courts”,
there's no similar time limit. In order to file a complaint or to seek redressal a
buyer/ consumer has to approach the “consumer courts” when although the flat/
apartment bought by them has been delivered by the builder, there's any
insufficiency or any other blights in the same and the consumer holds the
completion instrument, also similar cases won't come under the governance of
the “real estate nonsupervisory authority board. ”4
The displeased party will have to approach the “consumer court” which is
“public consumer disagreement redressal commission”. In cases of systems
where the instruments of completion are not granted and the possession is not
with the buyers, the buyer( consumer) can approach the “ real estate
nonsupervisory board( RERA) ” and for other legal remedies during prudency
are that in case a person has approached “ consumer court ” for relief, also a
consumer cannot approach any other authority for an kind of grievance which
states that a consumer cannot file two cases at the same time in different forums
or any applicable authority.
Under the “Real estate nonsupervisory authority act (RERA)”, forum
specifically takes an undertaking from the person who I making a complaint at
the time of making a complaint that the buyer/ consumer has not filed any other
complaint in addition which easily infringes the rights of the plaintiff to claim a
consolation. There are certain other rights of an allotter, for illustration to know
the state wise time schedule of completion of the design, to claim the refund of
the quantum paid along with interest and compensation if the protagonist fails
to give the possession of the property, and to take the possession of the property
within two months of issue of a residency instrument for the property. “Real

4
8 Mr. Bradley Dunseith, Scope of “RERA”, India Briefing
https://www.indiabriefing.com/news/the-rera-act-an-explainer-14275.html/”
estate nonsupervisory authority Act (RERA)” also makes it mandatory for all
the builders who are developing a design where the land exceeds 500 square
metre to register with the original state nonsupervisory authority before
launching or indeed flashing their design and also prohibits the builders to vend
and then on-compliance invites a discipline up to maximum “ imprisonment of
3 times or fine up to 10 of the total design cost ”. Further, the inventors are also
bound to upload all the design details similar as approved layout of the plan,
timeline, cost etc.

COMPLAINT UNDER RERA AND CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT

“Real estate nonsupervisory authority” has handed security and weal to buyers
consumers against the malpractices of the builders related to property, whereas
previous to the inception of the Act, consumers buyers had to file a complaint
before “National consumer disagreement redressal commission”. originally,
“Real estate nonsupervisory authority act” deals only in the cases which are
related to the parcels and a complaint can be filed by any of the agencies or by
the plaintiff himself herself, whereas, under consumer protection act only
registered agencies are allowed to do so. Thus, “Real estate nonsupervisory
authority act (RERA)” is a specific legislation, while “Consumer Protection
Act” relates generally to all consumers. Secondly, “Real estate nonsupervisory
authority” exercises its own power and control by deregistering the enterprises,
assessing forfeitures, putting them in defaulters list and orders to complete the
design by using state government’s guidelines and passes orders meetly. “Real
estate nonsupervisory authority Act (RERA)” lays down colorful measures to
complete the design by empowering the authority regarding the same to keep
home buyers down from the lurch, by chastising builder’s forum also prevents
and discourages the builders from bearing any farther systems when they don't
have needful finances. While the “public consumer disagreement redressal
commission” has its own power to execute orders, in comparison of regular
suits or orders passed by any colorful forums making the prosecution a steady
affair since compass of consumer act is veritably limited.
CONCLUSION
For regulating the “real estate” sector “the Real estate nonsupervisory authority
act” is a piece of corner legislation assessing time bound scores on promoters.
By bringing a fair play consumers or homebuyers rights are intended to be
defended. therefore, we can conclude that in a largely limited sector “Real
Estate nonsupervisory authority Act” was an important demanded and an
awaited legislation, to cover the buyers from frauds and from detention in
possession of property and to give a grievance redressal medium effectively.”
The lately enacted legislation will not only bring translucence and responsibility
but will also help the consumers or the property buyers to get a possession
easily and timely or train complaints against the builder or any “real estate”
enterprises. The consumers or home buyers may indeed anticipate early and fair
judgments and can seek relief without important difficulty within the frame of
three months unlike before the act when it took time and time to break a case.
“Real Estate authority act” is salutary for both the builders and consumers. But
it has added some query for “the Real Estate sector” because it has not been
legislated fully. This act has eventually ended up being an extension of “the
consumer protection act” where it helps to address the growing need for
translucency in favor of consumers as well as builders.