Mumbai: A city civil court has ruled in favour of an NRI businessman, ending a 15-year-long legal battle after a developer illegally sold his flat to another couple without his consent. The court held the subsequent sale to be illegal and directed the defendants to hand over possession of the flat to the businessman. The suit was filed by businessman Suresh Basantani through his power of attorney holder against M/s Siddhivinayak Builders, its office-bearers, and Sweta Das and Tarak Das, the couple to whom the flat was later sold.
According to the suit filed on April 9, 2010, Basantani claimed he is an NRI residing in the UAE for business purposes. He claimed the builders had constructed a building named Siddhivinayak Tower at Dahisar (East), where he purchased a flat on July 12, 1997. An agreement for sale was executed for a consideration of Rs7.76 lakh, which Basantani claimed to have paid in full. After receiving possession of the flat on November 17, 2002, he renovated it and returned to Abu Dhabi for work.
He did not visit the flat between November 2002 and May 2005. Basantani claimed when he visited India on May 21, 2005, he found that the lock of the flat had been changed and that the Das couple had occupied the premises. Upon inquiry, he learned that the builder had sold the flat to the couple through an agreement for sale dated February 11, 2005. Claiming that he was the lawful owner and that the builder had no right to resell it, Basantani approached the court. During the hearing, neither the builder nor its representatives appeared before the court.
The Das couple, however, contested the suit. Their advocate, Filji Frederick, argued that the couple were bona fide purchasers who had no knowledge of the prior agreement executed in favour of Basantani. It was also contended that the agreement for sale between the builder and the plaintiff had been cancelled due to alleged non-payment of the full consideration, and therefore Basantani could not claim ownership. The defence argued that the plaintiff should have sought compensation from the builder instead.
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The court, however, noted that Basantani had produced a possession letter on record, establishing that he had lawfully taken possession of the flat. The court observed that since the builder had failed to appear, the claim of cancellation of the earlier agreement cannot be accepted without proper pleadings. Holding the agreement signed with the Das couple null and void, the court ruled that the earlier agreement in favour of Basantani prevailed.
As the builder had already transferred the flat to the plaintiff, it could not legally transfer the same flat again. The court directed the defendants to hand over possession of the flat to Basantani and restrained them from alienating or dealing with the property in any manner.
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