NCDRC rejects HSVP appeal over 973-day delay, plot allottee's Rs 1 lakh award stands
The NCDRC refused to excuse HSVP's 973-day delay and dismissed its appeal, leaving in place a State Commission order that quashed an extra demand on a plot allottee.
Key points
- The NCDRC on 3 November 2026 dismissed an appeal by the Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran after refusing to condone a 973-day delay.
- The Haryana State Commission had quashed an extra demand on a plot allottee and awarded Rs 1 lakh compensation and Rs 21,000 costs.
- The NCDRC held that a government body has no immunity from time limits; its order may be challenged in the Supreme Court.
The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) on 3 November 2026 dismissed an appeal by the Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP), the state's urban development authority, after refusing to excuse a delay of 973 days in filing it. The ruling leaves in place a Haryana State Commission order that quashed an extra demand on a residential plot allottee and awarded the allottee Rs 1 lakh in compensation.
What Happened
According to the order, a plot allottee had complained to the Haryana State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission about demands, including an enhanced amount, that HSVP raised on a residential plot. On 1 May 2019 the State Commission quashed the additional demand under challenge, directed the allottee to pay a certain amount and directed HSVP to issue a no dues certificate. It awarded Rs 1 lakh in compensation and Rs 21,000 in litigation costs.
HSVP filed its appeal on 28 January 2022. It said the file had moved between its Gurugram offices, legal cell and accounts branch, which put the financial implication at Rs 7,33,348, and that the Covid-19 pandemic then held up the filing.
The NCDRC held that the explanation was "neither cogent nor is sufficient". It said HSVP had acted "as if it being a government entity has an immunity against limitation", that there was no good account of the file's movement between 30 May 2019 and March 2020, before the pandemic began, and that appeals were being filed online and by post even during the pandemic. Citing the Supreme Court, it called HSVP's account an excuse rather than an explanation, rejected the delay application and dismissed the appeal.
What It Means
For homebuyers and plot allottees who win against a development authority, the order shows that a government body gets no special allowance for a late appeal: it must explain the delay with records, not general reasons. Here the State Commission's 2019 order, which the NCDRC had stayed in April 2022 while the appeal was pending, now stands.
An NCDRC order in a first appeal may be challenged before the Supreme Court. Consumers with disputes over allotment demands can seek help from the National Consumer Helpline (1915) or file a complaint on e-Daakhil.
Source: Consumer commission order
Sources & Citations
- Consumer commission order — Consumer commission