The Forum for People’s Collective Efforts (FPCE) has approached Banerjee so that necessary directions are issued to ensure a fully operational and functional Real Estate Regulatory Authority and Real Estate Appellate Tribunal under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act 2016 (RERA).
The state had earlier implemented the West Bengal Housing Industry Regulation Act, 2017 (WBHIRA), which was held unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in May last year.
The group of homebuyers has written to Banerjee to point out that RERA is still not fully operational in the state of West Bengal more than a year after the apex court ruling invalidated the locally enforced legislation.
Although the process of implementing RERA has begun in the state with the issuance of notification for the establishment of RERA and its appellate tribunal, no appointment has yet been made of its chairperson and its members.
“This has encouraged builders to blatantly violate the provisions of RERA. They are launching, advertising and selling real estate projects without registration in the state,” the homebuyers’ body said in its letter. “(Sellers are) continuing with malpractices, such as taking more than 10% of money from homebuyers without executing a builder-buyer agreement; diverting funds from the projects; and changing sanctioned plans and specifications after projects have been sold without taking written consent from 2/3rd of allottees for gains.”
The apex court, in its order dated February 14, 2022, has directed the state of West Bengal to immediately implement RERA.
