The Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (KRERA) has given the green light to the Golden Gates Properties Ltd, a local developer in Bengaluru, to pay the delayed interest amounting to Rs. 1.08 crore to a homebuyer as the company failed to deliver the possession of a flat in the Presidential Tower — a 50-storey residential skyscraper, a landmark in Yeshwanthpur and one of the tallest in the city with a height of 161 metres.
The directive comes after years of delay in handing over the unit, despite the buyer having paid nearly the entire amount as per the agreed schedule. The project, marketed as a premium high-rise with luxury amenities, has been one of Bengaluru’s most discussed residential ventures, but also one that has faced repeated extensions and persistent construction delays.
A Case Rooted in Nearly a Decade of Delay
According to KRERA’s order, the buyer booked the apartment in 2014 for close to ₹2 crore, with the developer promising possession by 2017. However, construction stagnated, and possession never materialised, leaving the homebuyer with little clarity on timelines. This ultimately led the complainant to approach the state regulator.
KRERA noted in its ruling, “The Respondent is hereby directed to pay delay period interest of ₹1.08 crore calculated at the rate of SBI MCLR 2% from 2017 till 2024.” The authority added that interest for the period beyond 2024, “till actual delivery of possession will be calculated likewise and paid to the Complainant.”
The buyer, Premlatha, signed the sale agreement on November 29, 2014, for a unit in A Block of the tower at a price of ₹1.98 crore. She paid ₹1.5 crore as per the payment plan but has still not received the flat—eight years after the promised delivery date including the grace period.
Project Extensions: From Initial Deadline to 2025
KRERA order details the different times the extensions were granted to the timeline of the project:
- First registration: July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2021
- First extension (COVID-19): till March 30, 2022
- Extension under Section 6: till March 3, 2023
- Extension under Section 7(3): till December 31, 2025
However, after these extensions, the authority has noted that none of the extensions changed the delivery timeline as per the sale agreement between the developer and the buyer. KRERA stressed, “The complainant paid substantial sums and complied with payment obligations, yet the possession has not been handed over to date.”
Golden Gates Properties argued that the delay was caused by factors such as the pandemic and force majeure conditions, and cited various RERA-approved extensions to justify the prolonged timeline. The developer had also offered the buyer a one-time concession of ₹10.5 lakh to settle the matter.
However, KRERA dismissed these arguments, noting that regulatory extensions do not override contractual obligations. The order stated: “There is no documentary material placed on record showing that the complainant gave consent to vary the agreed date in the sale agreement or that a fresh agreement varying the contractual date was executed with the complainant.”
KRERA further clarified that extensions granted under RERA are administrative in nature and do not exempt the promoter from paying compensation for delayed delivery. The authority also pointed out that the developer failed to provide specific evidence of month-wise labour shortages, material supply disruptions, or documented financial challenges directly impacting the buyer’s flat.
Buyer’s Concerns and Pending Site Amenities
Besides the delay interest, the complainant had also asked KRERA to instruct the promoter to complete the pending amenities in the project. While the tower is advancing structurally, it still lacks the resolution of several infrastructure aspects such as common areas, service facilities, and certain amenities that were promised and left unfinished.
The matter here is one among several such instances that have come up due to incomplete real estate projects in Bengaluru and thus, the regulators have been demanding developers to deliver on time and adhere to compliance more strictly.
This development follows a series of recent KRERA interventions, including directions to the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) on long-pending layout registrations and orders against other developers over issues related to undivided share misuse, incomplete boundary walls, and project stagnation. As KRERA emphasised in another part of the order, administrative extensions cannot be used as a shield against contractual accountability, a point that is becoming central in many rulings this year.
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