Developers Win as Karnataka HC Scraps RERA Delay Fees Circular
Karnataka RERA Circular dated 3.9.2020 levy heavy “delay fees” of Rs.10,000/- per project for delay of month from due month and Rs.20,000/- for delay beyond one month.
This was for belated submission of quarterly updates and annual audit statements, without distinction to the scale of the project, the stage of development or the peculiar circumstances surrounding it.
HELD that the so called delays on the developers and promoters stands exposed as utterly failing of statutory parentage. It finds no sustenance in the Act; it locates no foundation in the Rules; it is not the offspring of delegated legislation either. It is in fact a levy, conjured into existence by executive assertion, unsupported by legislative warrant.
No Statutory Authority to impose and collect “Delay Fees” – Sections 11, 34, 37, 61 and 63 or the Rules impose duties or allow directions but do not authorize fee collection.
Judgment dated 19.9.2025 of the Karnataka High Court at Bengaluru in WP No.3379 of 2024 (GM-RES) of Sharada Achar vs. State of Karnataka and others with connected writ petitions.
.
