Allottees protest move to levy 10% interest on flat payments

Allottees of Delhi Development Authority’s (DDA) 2014 housing scheme are opposing the land-owning agency’s decision to charge 10% interest on balance payment, which was to be made by them after the completion of the five year lock-in clause.

The clause, which was introduced in the housing scheme of 2014, was recently removed by the land-owning agency following protest by residents.

The allottees said they are getting allotment letters along with demand to make the balance 10% payment of their flats.

Allottees are saying that the decision to remove the lock-in period was taken long back.

“It is DDA’s fault that they didn’t approve it on time. In the 2017 housing scheme, in which flats returned by allottees of 2014 were put on sale, this clause was not there. We were promised that the clause will be hence removed from our scheme. Why should we pay for DDA’s fault?” asked Vaibhav Puggal, president of Association of Allottees (R) 2014 and 2017.

The allottees say that they were ready to pay the entire amount in 2014, but it was DDA’s decision to bring in a five-year lock-in clause to prohibit allottees from selling their flats.

Contacted, DDA officials admitted that the clause has been removed but said that the interest is being charged as per the norms in the 2014 housing scheme. “This was clearly mentioned when the scheme was advertised in 2014. They knew what they are getting into. We can’t alter the clause now,” said a DDA official, who is aware of the development.

The clause has already led to problems for allottees as they are unable to register their properties. The DDA is unable to execute the conveyance deed (giving freehold rights to allottees) of flats due to the clause.

The DDA realised the problem when it started executing the conveyance deed of flats after it removed the five-year lock-in clause in December 2018.

The land agency is now exploring ways to resolve the problem. “We have asked the legal department to look into the matter,” said a DDA official. “We have been at the receiving end of DDA’s poor planning. The housing complexes still don’t have basic facilities,” said Puggal.