Consumer court news: Holding that a builder cannot evade liability merely by offering possession without a valid occupancy certificate or promised amenities, the national consumer forum has directed Experion Developers to hand over a flat in its Lucknow project, refund over Rs 21 lakh allegedly collected in excess from the buyers and pay delay compensation at 6 per cent interest on the Rs 1.13 crore sale price.

A bench comprising presiding member AVM J Rajendra (Retd) and member Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta partly modified a June 2024 order of the Uttar Pradesh State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in a dispute between the developer and homebuyers Preeti Yadav and Pushpendra Kumar Yadav over cancellation of their allotment in the Gomti Nagar housing project ‘Experion Capital’.

NCDRC presiding member AVM J Rajendra (Retd) and member Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta issued the order on May 12.

“It is a settled principle that a mere issuance of an offer of possession does not absolve the builder…