Case: Ghaziabad Development Authority Vs. Sanchar Vihar Sahkari Avas Samiti Ltd

it reads as under : "balance amount payable in six half yearly instalments with 15% interest". 10. Mr. O. P. Rana, learned Senior counsel appearing in support of Civil Appeal filed by the authority contended that the entire brochure has to be read together because this was an advertisement to the public at large and in terms of the brochure applications from the eligible persons were invited for allotting houses/plots under the said scheme. When the applicants/members of the complainant applied to the authority under the present scheme their applications were processed, scrutinized as per the brochure and were given the instalment facility as regard the payment of balance amount in six half yearly instalments in terms of column 9, table 1 annexed to the said brochure. Column 9 provides that if the facility of payment of balance amount in six half yearly instalments is being availed of, then applicants are required to pay interest @ 15% per annum on the balance amount of instalments. He urged that the members of the complainant did avail the facility of payment of balance amount in six half yearly instalments as per column 9 in table 1 and accordingly paid the interest at 15% per annum. Mr O. P. Rana, therefore, urged that it is not open to the complainant now to say that the amount of Rs. 26,70,246.00 paid to the authority was not payable and the same be refunded.11. Mr. Narender Kaushik, learned counsel appearing for the complaintant, however, strongly relied upon the wording of clause 3.50 of the brochure and urged that the National Commission has committed no error in issuing direction to the authority to refund the amount of Rs. 25,37,669/- to the complainant. 12. In our opinion the National Commission was not justified in dissecting clause 3.50 and column 9 of table 1 of the brochure. The brochure published by the authority has to be read together. It is true that clause 3.50 is silent about the liability of the applicant to pay the interest @ 15% on the balance amount but that clause in our opinion has to be read with table 1, column 9. This we say so because table 1 sets out the details relating to scheme, name and code, the property category, number of plots, approximate cost of the plots, payment plan/pay plan, registration amount, reservation amount, balance amount payment schedule etc. Since the complainant and its members have availed the facility of payment of balance amount in the Self Financing Scheme in six half yearly instalments and accordingly paid the interest with 15% per annum it would be too late in the day to say that in the Self Financing Scheme they were not liable to pay interest on the balance amount as claimed by the authority. If the members of the complainant were not agreeable to the payment of interest on the balance amount @ 15% as prescribed in column 9 of table 1 then they ought to have objected to the liability to pay the interest provided therein and should have raised the dispute at the appropriate time. Having acquiesced in the mode of payment in instalments as per coloum 9 of table 1 in our opinion it would not be permissible for the complaintant to raise a dispute as regard the payment of interest thereon. It is thus in our opinion that the finding of the Tribunal, "We have carefully perused the brochure and find that clause 3.50 makes no distinction between the houses and plots. In any case this rule clearly states that no interest is payable on instalments under the Self Financing Scheme. Column 9 in the table in Annexure-1 cannot override the rule as mentioned in clause 3.50. We are, therefore, of the view that the interest cannot be charged from those who have applied for the plots under Self Financing Scheme", is an erroneous interpretation of the brochure and in particular clause 3.50 and column 9 of table 1. The entire brochure is required to be read as a whole as it related to various schemes of housing to the eligible persons. Table 1 which is part of brochure has to be read in consonance with clause 3.50. It would not be correct to read clause 3.50 in isolation to column 9 of table 1 and to come to the conclusion that since no provisions as regards the interest is made in clause 3.50, the authority is not entitled to charge interest on the balance amount being paid in instalments. We are, therefore, of the opinion that clause 3.50 is required to be read in conjunction with column 9 of table 1 of the brochure. With respect we are unable to agree with the finding of the National Commission on this issue and accordingly the same is unsustainable.13. Coming to the appeal filed by the complainant (Civil Appeal No. 7439 of 1995) we are of the opinion that the National Commission has made no mistake in refusing interest or damages for delayed possession of the plots to the members of the complainant. During the course of arguments it was brought to our notice that the lands in question were the subject matter of land acquisition proceedings and because of the interim orders obtained by the land owners/claimants the authority was unable to finalise the acquisition proceedings and obtained possession thereof. During the course of hearing, learned counsel for the claimants produced in Court a zerox copy of the letter dated 19-2-1996 addressed to the individual plot holders. It is signed by the Joint Secretary, Ghaziabad Vikas Pardhikaran, Ghaziabad. Taken on record. We have perused the said letter and Mr. Rana, learned Senior counsel, appearing for the authority assured the Court that every necessary steps will be taken by the authority to hand over the possession of the plots to the applicants who have been allotted the plots under the present scheme. We hope the Authority will do the needful in terms of the letter dated 19-2-1996.

Decision (1 = appeal accepted, 0 = rejected): 1

Explanation:
1[ds]12. In our opinion the National Commission was not justified in dissecting clause 3.50 and column 9 of table 1 of the brochure. The brochure published by the authority has to be read together. It is true that clause 3.50 is silent about the liability of the applicant to pay the interest @ 15% on the balance amount but that clause in our opinion has to be read with table 1, column 9. This we say so because table 1 sets out the details relating to scheme, name and code, the property category, number of plots, approximate cost of the plots, payment plan/pay plan, registration amount, reservation amount, balance amount payment schedule etc. Since the complainant and its members have availed the facility of payment of balance amount in the Self Financing Scheme in six half yearly instalments and accordingly paid the interest with 15% per annum it would be too late in the day to say that in the Self Financing Scheme they were not liable to pay interest on the balance amount as claimed by the authority. If the members of the complainant were not agreeable to the payment of interest on the balance amount @ 15% as prescribed in column 9 of table 1 then they ought to have objected to the liability to pay the interest provided therein and should have raised the dispute at the appropriate time. Having acquiesced in the mode of payment in instalments as per coloum 9 of table 1 in our opinion it would not be permissible for the complaintant to raise a dispute as regard the payment of interest thereon. It is thus in our opinion that the finding of the Tribunal, "We have carefully perused the brochure and find that clause 3.50 makes no distinction between the houses and plots. In any case this rule clearly states that no interest is payable on instalments under the Self Financing Scheme. Column 9 in the table incannot override the rule as mentioned in clause 3.50. We are, therefore, of the view that the interest cannot be charged from those who have applied for the plots under Self Financing Scheme", is an erroneous interpretation of the brochure and in particular clause 3.50 and column 9 of table 1. The entire brochure is required to be read as a whole as it related to various schemes of housing to the eligible persons. Table 1 which is part of brochure has to be read in consonance with clause 3.50. It would not be correct to read clause 3.50 in isolation to column 9 of table 1 and to come to the conclusion that since no provisions as regards the interest is made in clause 3.50, the authority is not entitled to charge interest on the balance amount being paid in instalments. We are, therefore, of the opinion that clause 3.50 is required to be read in conjunction with column 9 of table 1 of the brochure. With respect we are unable to agree with the finding of the National Commission on this issue and accordingly the same is unsustainable.13. Coming to the appeal filed by the complainant (Civil Appeal No. 7439 of 1995) we are of the opinion that the National Commission has made no mistake in refusing interest or damages for delayed possession of the plots to the members of the complainant. During the course of arguments it was brought to our notice that the lands in question were the subject matter of land acquisition proceedings and because of the interim orders obtained by the land owners/claimants the authority was unable to finalise the acquisition proceedings and obtained possession thereof. During the course of hearing, learned counsel for the claimants produced in Court a zerox copy of the letter datedaddressed to the individual plot holders. It is signed by the Joint Secretary, Ghaziabad Vikas Pardhikaran, Ghaziabad. Taken on record. We have perused the said letter and Mr. Rana, learned Senior counsel, appearing for the authority assured the Court that every necessary steps will be taken by the authority to hand over the possession of the plots to the applicants who have been allotted the plots under the present scheme. We hope the Authority will do the needful in terms of the letter dated