NOIDA: The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has dismissed four appeals from Gaursons Hi-Tech Infrastructure concerning shop-buyer disputes related to the Gaur City Centre project in Greater Noida West. The court declined to intervene with the favorable orders issued by the UP-Rera and the Real Estate Appellate Tribunal (REAT) for the buyers.
The court noted that the developer failed to provide reasonable diligence in approaching the court, with reasons cited for delays deemed “bald, unsupported, and unsatisfactory,” in some cases showing a “careless and reckless” attitude. This ruling enables the execution of RERA orders.
In judgments delivered on January 21, Justice Prashant Kumar stated that extensions for limitations cannot be granted lightly and stressed the need for courts to differentiate between genuine reasons and mere excuses. The court referenced multiple Supreme Court decisions indicating that repeated, unexplained delays cannot be disregarded.
The appeals were a result of complaints from allottees who had booked commercial units at the Gaur City Centre in Sector 4 of Greater Noida West, paying between 30-50% of the total cost upfront, with the balance contingent on possession being offered.
Upon realizing that possession was delayed beyond the promised schedules, these allottees approached UP-RERA between 2021 and 2022. Following inspections revealing unfinished construction, RERA instructed the developer to complete the project in accordance with agreements, secure occupancy certificates, transfer possession, execute sale deeds, and pay interest for delays, adjusted against any dues owed by buyers.
Gaursons then contested RERA’s directives before REAT in Lucknow, but each appeal was rejected due to delays ranging from 79 to 224 days. Dismissal orders were issued between October and November 2024.
REAT also noted the developer’s failure to comply with the mandatory pre-deposit requirement under the RERA Act. The developer’s claim that delays were caused by issues retrieving electronic records due to malware was dismissed, given that the necessary documents were accessible on the RERA website.
Afterward, the developer approached the High Court, again with delayed filings. The court dismissed all four appeals for being time-barred, indicating that the pattern of delay reflected a lack of diligence that warranted no leniency. “…the appellant failed to prove reasonable diligence in pursuing the matter before both this Court and the UP Real Estate Appellate Tribunal,” the court stated, emphasizing that such behavior disallows a litigant from discretionary relief.
With the High Court’s refusal to intervene, the dismissal effectively eliminates the appellate hurdle, allowing buyers to proceed with the execution of RERA orders. A Gaursons spokesperson remarked that the company challenged the REAT order primarily regarding the interpretation of “deemed completion.” “We maintain that ‘deemed completion’ is satisfied in this project, as clearly acknowledged by UP-RERA’s notification dated September 16, 2019,” the spokesperson noted.
Regarding the delays, the spokesperson explained: “The delay was solely due to an unforeseen technical issue with retrieving electronic data. It was unintentional and does not reflect a lack of diligence or improper conduct on our part.”
