Mr. and Mrs. Kanitkar purchased a flat from a well renowned builder in Andheri, Mumbai. As the flat moved towards completion, they decide to visit the construction site to check up on the progress. The Kanitkars reached the site and were happy with how the project was shaping up, they could imagine how the landscape would look after completion and were very elated thinking about the future.
They reached their flat to get a feel of their new abode, Mrs kanitkar excitedly pointing out the probable placement of furniture and fixtures to Mr. Kanitkar. A few moments later, Mr. Kanitkar realised that there was an abrupt silence, he turned around only to find an ashen faced Mrs. Kanitkar staring out the french window of their hall. Mr. Kanitkar moved to her side to witness the source of his wife’s distress and found himself looking at a stream of sewage nullah flowing across their entire view from the hall. Beyond the black stream were numerous small heaps of garbage which was turned over carefully by children and birds, for valuables.
The Kanitkars were sure that no official dump sites were anywhere near their project and yet they found themselves staring at a scene that might be a constant companion for the rest of their lives. They both quickly departed the site dejected by the experience and depressed that they might have ill spent their money and that there won’t be anything they can do about it. They wondered if they should just cancel the flat, but they had already paid lakhs of rupees as an advance amount and they were afraid that the builder may forfeit all of it. Mrs. Kanitkar reminded her husband about the stamp duty, registration charges and GST paid, not to mention the additional cost of cancellation Deed registration if they decide to cancel the flat booking.
The Kanitkars decided to talk with the builder’s CRM team, after a few discussions they asked the builders if there was another flat available that they can book and if the builder would be able to transfer the payment that they have made towards their present flat to the new flat. The Builder’s CRM team talked with their superiors and after a few days gave a positive reply. The CRM team told Kanitkars that the registration of their flat can be cancelled by registering a Cancellation Deed. The CRM team further said that the reason for cancellation will be shown in the cancellation deed as “the purchasers are facing financial difficulties”. Kanitkar’s were unsure about the said reason and felt that registering a cancellation deed with such a false reason could backfire in the future especially since they were purchasing a different flat with a better view. They tried talking with the CRM team who were adamant that the “financial difficulty” can be the only reason because if they include any other reason within cancellation deed then the Kanitkars will not be able to get Stamp Duty Refund. CRM team also said that since the officials for refund themselves only accept said one reason for cancellation hence if they mention any other reason, their application will get rejected and they will lose the stamp duty amount. So the questions which arise are, is what the CRM team said true? Can you mention only one reason for cancellation of your flat booking? Do people lie during registration even if they don’t want to?
Unfortunately, this belief that only “financial difficulty” should be mentioned as a reason is so widespread and agreed upon that there are instances where Joint sub registrar/s, officers responsible for document registration and stamp duty assessment themselves declare that financial difficulty is the only acceptable reason if you wish to get stamp duty amount back. In face of such staunch and repeated misinformation, it is of little wonder if the buyers give in and agree to include the reason as financial difficulty knowing that it is a lie. If any amongst you wish to cancel your property and include the reason for a bad view from your flat, then please go ahead and firmly ask your CRM team to maintain that reason for cancellation. But how could you trust such an assertion, especially from someone like me whom you have never met and know nothing about. The short answer is you can’t trust me and there is no need for it either. Allow me to present you with an excerpt from the Maharashtra Stamp Act, section 48
(1) 48. The application for relief under section 47 shall be made within
the following period, that is to say,—
(1) in the cases mentioned in clause (c)(5), within 3[six months] of
the date of the instruments :
4[Provided that, where an agreement to sale of immovable property
on which stamp duty is paid under Article 25 of the SCHEDULE I, is
registered under the provisions of the Registration Act, 1908 and
thereafter such agreement is cancelled by a registered cancellation deed
for whatsoever reasons before taking the possession of the property
which is the subject matter of such agreement, within a period of five
years from the date of execution of the agreement to sale, then the
application for relief may be made within a period of six months from
the date of registration of cancellation deed.]
The highlighted words within the excerpt presented hereinabove clearly state that refund application can be submitted “for whatsoever reasons”. So now you can put your trust in the act by the state government and be assured that you will get your money back without having to lie in your document. Legal technicalities are numerous and so from your Builder/Developer CRM Team to your estate agents to Joint Sub Registrars to us, everyone can use a bit more information with regards to cancellation and refund procedure. Please feel free to mention any factual reasons for cancellation. Providing fabricated reasons will lead to a guilty conscience and worse government proceedings against you.
If you have any queries you can reach us at info@legalcounter.in. Thank you for reading, hope this will help you.
