KOCHI: The Ernakulam District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has directed the construction company to pay an additional compensation of Rs 23.12 lakh to a couple who lost their residence after the demolition of the Holy Faith H2O apartment complex in Maradu in 2020 following a Supreme Court directive.
This is over and above the Rs 44 lakh fixed by the Supreme Court-appointed Justice K Balakrishnan Nair Committee that was tasked with deciding the exact amount of compensation payable to the owners of flats in the four apartment complexes in Maradu, a suburb of Kochi. The buildings were demolished for CRZ violations.
The commission ordered that the complainants – K K Nair, a retired Navy Captain and his wife Geetha Nair – be paid a sum of Rs 23,12,437 for the serious deficiency in service and the inconvenience, mental agony, hardship and financial loss suffered because of the negligence of the construction company. The couple had bought an apartment in the complex built by Holy Faith Builders and Developers Pvt. Ltd. They availed a loan of Rs 20 lakh from the SBI RACPC Branch in Palarivattom.
The builder had claimed that the apartment complex had all the necessary approvals and clearances, and the bank, having the project on its approved list, sanctioned the loan purportedly after verifying the documents. However, the Supreme Court later ruled that the apartment complex violated legal norms and directed its demolition.
The complainants alleged the builder misled them about the project’s legal status, constituting an unfair trade practice.
They claimed that the bank did not verify the documents adequately and misled them into believing the construction was lawful. They had to vacate the complex in August 2019, and had repaid Rs 24,89,396 towards their loan. The order was issued by a bench comprising president D B Binu and members V Ramachandran and T N Sreevidhia.