The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, Mohali, has directed ATS Estates and ATS Infrastructure to refund ₹1.66 Lakh , collected as excess external development charges (EDC), to two plot owners of ATS Golf Meadows-2, along with 9% annual interest from June 24, 2022.
The commission held that the developer had collected EDC at a higher rate than the amount actually payable to the Dera Bassi municipal committee, and retained the excess amount without lawful justification. The commission also awarded ₹20,000 as compensation, including litigation expenses.
The order was passed by the bench comprising president SK Aggarwal, member Paramjeet Kaur and member Lt Col Jasbir Singh Bath.
According to the order, complainants Shashi Bhushan Mittal and Renu Mittal had purchased a plot measuring 350 square yards in ATS Golf Meadows-2, through a registered sale deed executed on October 13, 2021. The original allottees had earlier paid EDC at the rate of ₹1,250 per square yard, amounting to ₹4,37,500, to the developer.
The complainants submitted that when they later sought approval of the building plan, the Dera Bassi municipal committee, required them to deposit ₹2,42,382 towards EDC. They paid the amount to avoid delays in construction. Although ATS later reimbursed this payment, the complainants argued that the actual EDC payable worked out to ₹742 per square yard and that the developer had already collected ₹1,250 per square yard from the original allottees, resulting in an excess recovery of ₹1,65,943.
{{/usCountry}}The complainants submitted that when they later sought approval of the building plan, the Dera Bassi municipal committee, required them to deposit ₹2,42,382 towards EDC. They paid the amount to avoid delays in construction. Although ATS later reimbursed this payment, the complainants argued that the actual EDC payable worked out to ₹742 per square yard and that the developer had already collected ₹1,250 per square yard from the original allottees, resulting in an excess recovery of ₹1,65,943.
{{/usCountry}}The complainants alleged that despite repeated requests and a legal notice issued in December 2022, the developer failed to refund the excess amount.
ATS Estates and ATS Infrastructure contested the complaint, arguing that the complainants were not consumers under the Consumer Protection Act because they had purchased the plot from the original allottees and had no direct contractual relationship with the developer. The companies also contended that all dues had been settled with the original allottees before the sale and maintained that any dispute regarding EDC involved the municipal committee, which had not been made a party to the proceedings.
Rejecting these objections, the commission held that the complainants, as registered owners of the plot, had stepped into the shoes of the original allottees and were entitled to pursue the complaint. It further held that the dispute did not concern the municipal committee’s levy of EDC but the excess amount collected and retained by the developer.
Relying on the documents placed on record, including communications issued by ATS regarding EDC payments and reimbursement, the commission found that the developer had recovered ₹4,37,500 as EDC from the original allottee while the actual amount payable to the civic body was only ₹2,42,382.
The commission concluded that the developer had overcharged and retained ₹1,65,943 without justification, amounting to deficiency in service and an unfair trade practice under the Consumer Protection Act.
The bench directed ATS Estates and ATS Infrastructure to refund ₹1,65,943 with 9% annual interest from June 24, 2022, within 30 days of receiving the certified copy of the order. It said that if the amount is not paid within the stipulated period, it will carry interest at 12% per annum until actual payment. The commission also directed the companies to pay ₹20,000 to the complainants towards compensation for mental agony, harassment and litigation expenses.