BHUBANESWAR: A city-based real estate developer was show-caused by the additional district magistrate (ADM) of Bhubaneswar for not complying with an order of the Odisha Real Estate Regulatory Authority (ORERA) to compensate aggrieved homebuyers in a 2019 case.
According to sources, the builder executed a multi-storied housing project in Ghatikia but failed to deliver the houses on time. As a result, 18 aggrieved homebuyers approached ORERA, which asked the builder to pay a compensation of Rs 87.94 lakh.
The builder later filed an appeal against the ORERA order at the Odisha Real Estate Appellate Tribunal (OREAT), which was dismissed, and the verdict went in favour of the homebuyers again.
In a recent development, the additional district magistrate, while show-causing the builder, asked why a warrant of arrest should not be issued against him for not complying with the ORERA order repeatedly.
“You have failed to satisfy the certificate case of Rs 87.94 lakh, and it is proposed to execute the certificate case by arrest and imprisonment of your person,” reads the show-cause notice of the ADM, Bhubaneswar.
It further asked the builder to appear before the court with the reply on December 31. “You are required to appear before this court on December 31 and to show cause why you should not be committed to civil prison in execution of the said certificate,” the notice reads.
The movable and immovable assets of the same builder were attached before on the orders of the Supreme Court of India earlier this year when one of the buyers approached the apex court for the delay in getting the house he invested in.
“This is a positive development for the aggrieved homebuyers who are approaching ORERA with the hope of early resolution of their complaints after being cheated by the builders,” Bimalendu Pradhan, one of the buyers, said.
He said homebuyers often get favourable orders, but the orders are not being executed. “As per rules, the recovery is supposed to be carried out by the ADM. The Supreme Court has given clear guidelines to execute such orders within six months, but the rate of execution is less than 2%,” he said.
Notably, ORERA recently issued a list of 57 promoters who failed to pay the penalty imposed on them for violating different provisions under the Odisha Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act of 2016.
As per the records, over Rs 6.89 crores of penalty amount was imposed on as many as 60 realtors for the violations, out of which only Rs 23 lakh was recovered so far. Out of the 60, only three promoters complied and paid the penalty amount.
