Dilip Estate & Town Planners in Hot Water with MahaRERA over Advertisement Issue.

The Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) has taken action against Dilip Estate & Town Planners Pvt. Ltd. for violating advertising regulations. The regulatory authority has imposed a penalty of Rs. 50,000/- on the promoter for not mentioning the registration number of the project in an advertisement published by them.

Background

MahaRERA, the regulatory authority responsible for regulating the real estate sector in Maharashtra, India, had issued a show-cause notice on 20th March 2023 to Dilip Estate & Town Planners Pvt. Ltd. for violating the advertising regulations. The violation was in regards to an advertisement published in a local newspaper by the promoter without mentioning the MahaRERA project registration number.

The advertisement was related to the project “Dilkap Grandeur” bearing MahaRERA registration no. P51900006119 situated at Powai, Mumbai. As per the MahaRERA regulations, it is mandatory for promoters to mention the MahaRERA project registration number in all advertisements related to the real estate project.

In response to the show-cause notice, the promoter had submitted that the advertisement was issued by their advertising agency, and they had informed the advertiser about the MahaRERA registration number. However, due to inadvertence, the advertiser had omitted to mention the same in the advertisement.

MahaRERA had taken a serious note of the violation of the advertising regulations and had decided to take strict action against the promoter for the same. The regulatory authority had initiated legal proceedings against Dilip Estate & Town Planners Pvt. Ltd. for violating the advertising regulations and had also imposed a penalty on the promoter. This action by MahaRERA sends out a clear message to all the promoters that they cannot take the rules and regulations lightly and need to comply with them strictly.

Hearing

A hearing was scheduled on 17th April 2023 through video conferencing as per the MahaRERA Circular No. 27/2020 and MahaRERA Order No. 593/2023, where the promoter appeared through its representative and made its submissions. During the hearing, the promoter submitted that the advertisement was issued by their advertising agency, and due to inadvertence, the advertiser omitted to mention the MahaRERA registration number in the advertisement. The promoter further submitted that they had taken up the issue with their advertiser, and the advertising agency had issued an apology letter to them for the same. The promoter also mentioned that they had issued advertisements on 19th March 2023 and 21st March 2023 bearing the MahaRERA registration numbers.

MahaRERA Regulation

Section 11(2) of the RERA states that the advertisement or prospectus issued or published by the promoter shall prominently mention the website address of the Authority, wherein all details of the registered project have been entered and include the registration number obtained from the Authority and such other matters incidental thereto. From the plain reading of section 11(2), it is clear that the promoter is under an obligation to mention prominently the registration number of the project in the advertisements or the prospectus issued by it.

Penalty Imposed

In the present case, the promoter has published a small-sized advertisement in the local newspaper dated 18th March 2023. Further, the promoter has failed to publish the MahaRERA registration number in the said advertisement. Hence, the promoter is in violation of section 11(2) of RERA. In view of the above, a penalty of Rs. 50,000/- under section 61 of the RERA is imposed upon the promoter for violation of section 11(2).

Compliance

The said penalty shall be payable by the promoter within a period of 15 days from the date of this order, failing which a further penalty of Rs. 1,000/- per day would be imposed till compliance. The Technical and Finance Department of the MahaRERA authority shall verify the payment of the said penalty before processing any applications viz. extension, correction, change of name, etc., with respect to the said project.

Note: The information provided in this article about Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) is for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal or professional advice and readers should consult qualified professionals for advice specific to their circumstances.

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