Two homeowners in Mumbai, having paid ₹2.06 crore for a 1.95 crore apartment, sued a developer after the June 30 2017 possession deadline lapsed.
MahaRERA first directed the promoter to hand over the unit with an occupancy certificate by December 31 2019, but it allowed the buyers to seek interest later. In March 2021, the Maharashtra Real Estate Appellate Tribunal awarded interest at the State Bank of India’s highest marginal cost of lending rate plus 2 per cent, calculated from July 1 2017 until possession.
The builder challenged the Tribunal’s order before the Bombay High Court, arguing that by continuing to make payments under revised schedules and by not objecting to the developer’s letters announcing new dates, the buyers had tacitly accepted the delay. It also invoked Section 55 of the Indian Contract Act and cited force‑majeure clauses and the COVID‑19 pandemic.
The court held that Section 18 of RERA confers an unconditional right to monthly interest on buyers who remain in a delayed project, and that this right cannot be curtailed by a party’s conduct or by circumstances beyond the buyer’s control. It rejected the notion that informal letters constitute a new agreement, and it ruled that a pandemic occurring after the 2017 deadline could not justify the delay.
The High Court dismissed the builder’s appeal and reaffirmed the Tribunal’s interest order, thereby setting a precedent that buyers can claim interest from the original possession date even when RERA had not yet been enforced. The ruling signals that developers must honour interest obligations promptly, and it is expected to prompt other buyers to seek similar remedies.