The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) ordered the developers of M3M Merlin at Sector 67 in Gurugram to immediately stop constructing an eleventh tower, saying it was not included in the initial layout plan.
The NCDRC said the developers of the project, M3M India Private Limited and Consolidate Realtors Private Limited, did not take consent of the residents of the already built 10 towers of the project before taking the approval of the Directorate of Town & Country Planning (DTCP), Haryana for changing the project layout and constructing a new tower.
Complaint by owners
Around 300 homeowners of M3M Merlin, represented by PSP Legal, stated that the site plan in the brochure mentioned only 10 standalone towers with all apartments facing central greens spanning 13.34 acres, replete with world-class amenities and offerings and use of best-in-class finishing materials in all apartments, among other things.
In 2020, the developers managed to get approval from the DTCP for the revised building plan for Tower 11 in the EWS Block of the project, the complainants said.
The commission ruled that the developers, having promised the prospective flat buyers in the brochure that the project will have only 10 towers and a low-rise EWS building on one side, cannot build an additional tower now to the detriment of the interest of the existing flat owners.
The commission said marking the area for ‘future development’ did not allow the construction of a new high-rise tower. “Going for a new tower is a clear deficiency of service in terms of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 and Haryana Apartment Ownership Act, 1983,” the NCDRC ruled, while terming Tower 11 “illegal”.