08 March 2024 Property/Real Estate Law >> Property & Real Estate   |   Sale Deeds >> Property & Real Estate  

Facts:

• The developer constructed buildings on several plots and got a common layout sanctioned with internal roads and recreational grounds.
• The petitioner society purchased flats in one of the buildings. M/s. Harasiddhh Corporation acquired the plot adjoining the society's layout.
• The developer, without informing the society, executed a Deed of Right of Way in favor of M/s. Harasiddhh Corporation, granting them access through the society's internal road to their plot.
• The society applied for unilateral deemed conveyance of land and building under Section 11 of MOFA due to the developer's failure to convey the land.
• The Competent Authority granted the conveyance but subjected it to the right of way granted to M/s. Harasiddhh Corporation in the Deed.

Issue:

Whether the Competent Authority could consider the Deed of Right of Way (a document not part of the agreements with flat purchasers under Section 4 of MOFA) while issuing the conveyance certificate under Section 11 of MOFA.

Contentions:

• Petitioner Society: The Competent Authority's jurisdiction is limited to considering agreements under Section 4. The Deed is irrelevant and the society shouldn't be burdened with the right of way.
• Developer: The Deed is valid, and the society was aware of the right of way due to the layout plan. The society can contest the Deed in a separate civil suit.
• Intervenor (M/s. Harasiddhh Corporation): They have been using the road for years, and their development plan relies on the right of way.

Court's Analysis:

• The court emphasized that the conveyance under Section 11 should be strictly based on the agreements executed under Section 4.
• The Deed of Right of Way is a document between the developer and a third party and is not relevant to the agreements with the flat purchasers.
• While the Competent Authority can consider relevant documents beyond Section 4 agreements, the Deed doesn't qualify in this case.
• The society can pursue its challenge to the Deed's validity in a separate civil suit.

Decision:

The court likely ruled in favor of the petitioner society. The condition regarding the right of way in the conveyance certificate is likely to be removed. In essence, the court protected the rights of the flat purchasers by ensuring the conveyance reflects only the agreements they signed, and complex issues like the right of way should be addressed in a separate civil suit.

Maharashtra Ownership Flats (Regulation of the promotion of construction, sale, management and transfer) Act, 1963