Consumer Commission Orders Lodha Developers To Refund Rs 5 Cr To Senior Couple For Cancelling Flat Agreement

The State Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission (SCDRC) in Mumbai ordered Lodha Developers to refund around Rs 5 crore to an elderly couple for terminating its contract to deliver an apartment in World Towers in Lower Parel. Poonam Maharshi and Dr Nisha Amol Chavhan passed this judgment on March 13, 2026, ordering Lodha Developers, Shreeniwas Cotton Mills, Jawala Real Estate, and Macrotech Developers to “jointly and severally” refund Rs 2,83,59,554 to the senior couple, along with 10 per cent interest for terminating the allotment and for the stress and harassment caused to the seniors.

The retired senior citizen couple, Uttam and Anindita Chatterjee, booked a flat in World Crest’s World Tower in 2015. The 3 BHK flat with two parking spaces cost them Rs 12,22,22,160, and it was scheduled to be delivered in December 2015.

Later, the developer promised the delivery by March 2016, but by this time, the couple decided to exit the project.

When they informed the developer about their plan to exit, the developers offered them a 4 BHK with three garages in the same area, but in a different project, The Park. As per the Hindustan Times report, Develop offered the 4 BHK for Rs 8 crore with tentative possession in June 2018. However, this was only in the discussion, and they have never received any written proposal regarding it from the developers.

Chatterjees have bought the 3 BHK flat under the 20:80 payment structure. So, by this time, they had paid Rs 2.52 crore to the developers, but this was transferred to their second booking (4 BHK flat). In October 2016, the developer informed that the price of the 4 BHK has increased from Rs 8 crore to Rs 10 crore, and therefore, they need to pay an additional Rs 2 crore.

The couple then again decided to cancel their booking and exit, but the builder told them that if they exit now, they will have to pay a 10 per cent cancellation fee, which was Rs 1.2 crore.

Around this time, the government announced demonetisation in November 2016, leading to a crash in real estate prices. After the demonetisation, the marketing department of the builder called the couple and informed them about the availability of similar flats at a lower price (around Rs 7-8 crore). But, surprisingly, the developer didn’t revise the price for them.

The couple had to file a complaint against the builder. In their complaint, they mentioned that they had paid nearly 3 crore (Rs 2,83,59,554) to the builder, and instead of giving them the possession of the flat or a refund of their money, they terminated the booking.

The developer argued that the couple didn’t make a timely payment, and thus, they had deducted a 10 per cent fee for booking cancellation and terminated the agreement.

The Commission observed a deficiency in service on the part of the developer and that the termination letter was issued unilaterally. It held that such a “unilateral” stance is against the law.

The Commission found that the developer misrepresented the facts. It didn’t deliver the flat on time and provided misleading representations, amounting to breach of trust. The Commission held it to be an unfair trade practice. It ordered the developer to refund the amount (Rs 2.83 crore) and pay a 10 per cent interest on it starting August 2018, which comes out to be Rs 2.12 crore, making the total payment of around Rs 5 crore to the seniors.

Reportedly, the developers would consider challenging the order.