In major setback, consumer commission orders JIT to pay Rs 1.9 cr to 6 allottees

The Jalandhar Improvement Trust (JIT), already grappling with financial difficulties, suffered a major blow this week as the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission ruled against it in six separate cases concerning failed housing projects. The commission ordered the Trust to reimburse complainants, pay interest and cover compensation and litigation expenses, amounting to nearly Rs 1.9 crore.

Five of the cases were filed by allottees of Indrapuram Master Gurbanta Singh Enclave, who alleged they were handed possession of flats in 2009 without basic amenities like electricity, sewerage and water connections. One case was brought by an allottee of Surya Enclave Extension, who has yet to receive possession of the purchased plot.

The commission directed the JIT to refund the allottees' money with 9 per cent annual interest, payable within 45 days, alongside Rs 40,000 in compensation and litigation expenses for each case. The failure to comply with the orders will result in an increased interest rate of 12 per cent.

The allottees of Indrapuram claimed they paid over Rs 4 lakh each for flats under the 13.97-acre housing scheme but were met with uninhabitable conditions. “We were promised facilities like roads, streetlights, parks and water supply in the project brochure, but none of these was delivered. The complex has deteriorated into a hub of anti-social activities and our investments hold no value now,” stated complainants Sushma Luthra, Rakesh Kumar, Raman Kumar, Pawan Kumar and Sudhir Kumar. They also alleged that miscreants had illegally occupied the flats by breaking the locks.

In the Surya Enclave Extension case, complainant Parshotam Lal said he paid Rs 39 lakh for a plot but discovered the site was riddled with encroachments and lacked basic infrastructure. "There are no roads as per the map plan, and the plots are surrounded by a sewage pond and garbage dumps,” he said, adding that the promised demarcation and development remain incomplete till date.

Despite JIT counsel arguing that allottees had taken possession after verifying the work, the commission ruled in favour of the complainants, stating that the act on the part of the Jalandhar Improvement Trust (JIT) is nothing but an act of unfair trade practice and of cheating the public at large.