Chhattisgarh RERA Appellate Tribunal Grants Limited Interest for Delay in Shop Possession

The Chhattisgarh Real Estate Appellate Tribunal at Raipur has partly allowed an appeal filed by allottee Gopal Khandelwal, directing the promoter to pay interest for a short period of delay in handing over possession of commercial shops in a CBD Complex project.

The appeal arose from a complaint originally dismissed by the Chhattisgarh Real Estate Regulatory Authority in October 2025. Khandelwal had booked Shop Nos. 8 and 10 in Zone A of the CBD Complex and argued that the promoter failed to deliver possession within the agreed timeline of December 2017, despite receiving substantial payments over the years.

Earlier proceedings in the matter had a long procedural history. The allottee’s initial complaint was decided by RERA in May 2021, followed by cross-appeals before the Appellate Tribunal in 2023. Both sides then approached the Chhattisgarh High Court, which dismissed the second appeals in October 2024. Physical possession of the shops was eventually handed over on 9 January 2025.

Before the Appellate Tribunal, the key question was whether the allottee was entitled to interest for the entire delay period from December 2017 or only for a later phase. The tribunal noted that while the promoter was initially justified in withholding possession due to pending payments, the situation changed once the allottee cleared the remaining amount of ₹1,84,745 on 1 October 2024.

The tribunal observed that after receipt of the full consideration amount, the promoter was under a legal obligation to immediately hand over possession. The failure to do so amounted to a delay attributable solely to the promoter.

Rejecting the claim for interest for the entire period from 2017, the tribunal held that the allottee was not entitled to compensation for earlier years. However, it allowed interest for the specific delay between 1 October 2024 and 9 January 2025, when possession was finally delivered.

Applying Rule 17 of the Chhattisgarh Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Rules, 2017, the tribunal fixed the rate of interest at 12.40 percent per annum, calculated as the State Bank of India’s marginal cost of lending rate plus two percent.

Accordingly, the promoter has been directed to pay interest at 12.40 percent per annum on ₹9,22,412 for the period from 1 October 2024 to 9 January 2025 within 45 days. Each party has been ordered to bear its own costs, with advocate fees fixed at ₹7,000 per party.