BIHAR STATE HOUSING BOARDversusARUN DAKSHY

                  BIHAR STATE HOUSING BOARD                                A
                                   v.
                           ARUN DAKSHY

                          AUGUST 23, 2005

                                                                           B
              [ARlJIT PASAYAT AND H.K. SEMA, JJ.]

     Bihar State Housing Board (Management and Disposal of Housing
Estate) Regulation, 1983-Non allotment of house-Refund of eqrnest
money-Regulation prescribing interest @ 5% thereon-Consumer Protec-
tion Commission awarding interest @ l 8'Y,,_correctness of-Held : Com-     C
mission travelled beyond the statutory regulation-Respondent entitled to
interest @ 5% only-Consumer Protection.

     The question which has arisen for consideration in the present
appeal is whether the National Consumer Commission was right in
awarding interest @18% on refund of earnest money deposited by             D
respondent for allotment of MIG House under Bihar State Housing
Board (Management and Disposal of Housing Estate) Regulation, 1983.

     Allowing the appeal, the Court
                                                                           E
     HELD : Regulation 45 of the Bihar State Housing Board (Manage-
ment and Disposal of Housing Estate) Regulation, 1983 provides that
simple interest @ 5% will be payable on the money so deposited. The
Regulation being self-contained, the Commission should not have trav-
elled beyond the interest regulated by the statutory regulation. The
respondent is entitled to interest @ 5% as envisaged under Regulation      F
45. (822-A-B-C]

     Ghaziabad Development Aulhority v. Balbir Singh, [2004] 5 SCC 65,
relied on.
                                                                           G
     Bihar State Housing Board & Ors. v. Vijay Sharan & Ors., SLP (C)
No. 26021-22 of 1995 disposed of by Supreme Court on 17.2.1997,
referred to.

    CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION              Civil Appeal No. 7225 of
2002.                                                                      II
                          819
    820                   SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2005] SUPP. 2 S.C.R.

A        From the Judgment and Order dated 5.12.2001 of the National Con-
    sumer Disputes Redressal Commission, New Delhi in R.P. No. 2099 of
    1999.

          Sharvan Kumar and Himanshu Shekhar for the Appellant.
B
          Respondent-Ex-parte.

          The Judgment of the Court was delivered by

         H.K. SEMA, J. : This appeal preferred by the Bihar State Housing
C   Board is directed against the judgment and order dated 5 .10.2001 passed by
    the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (hereinafter the
    Commission) passed in Revision Petition No.2099 of 1999 affirming the
    orders passed by the State Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission and
    District Consumer Forum awarding interest @ 18%.
D
         Despite receipt of the notice, none entered appearance on behalf of the
    sole respondent.

          Briefly stated the facts are as follows:-

E         On 27.7.1989, the respondent deposited an amount of Rs.15,000 for
    allotment of MIG House in Barari Housing Colony in Bhagalpur, Bihar,
    under the Bihar State Housing Board (Management and Disposal of Housing
    Estate) Regulation 1983 (hereinafter the Regulation). Under the Regulation,
    the allotment of plots/house/flat is to be made by draw of lottery. The
F   respondent was unsuccessful in the draw of lottery and so he could not be
    allotted a house under the MIG category. On 28.7.1993, the respondent
    issued legal notice to the appellant for refund of an amount of Rs.15,000.
    The aforesaid notice was replied by a letter dated 6.10.1993 by the appellant,
    directing the respondent to submit original pay-in-slip for the purpose of
    refund. On 15.11.1994, the respondent submitted the original pay-in-slip.
G   Thereafter, the appellant refunded Rs. l 5,000 to the respondent vide cheque
    No.223231 dated 6.12.1 <)95. On 26.3.1996, the respondent filed a complaint
    before the District Forum. The District Forum passed an Award directing
    the appellar.t to pay Rs.15,000 with 18% interest. The appellant was also
    directed to pay Rs.5,000 as compensation. Being aggrieved, the appellant
H   filed an appeal before the State Consumer Commission, which was rejected,
    BIHAR STATE HOUSING BOARD v. ARUN DAKSHY [SEMA, J.] 821

being barred by limitation.                                                      A

     Notice was issued limited to the question of rate of interest.

      At this stage, it may be noted that the contention of the appellant,
before the Commissions was that as per Regulation 4" of the Regulation,          B
simple interest @ 5% will be payable on an amount of earnest money. It
would appear from the impugned order of the National Commission dated
5th October, 200 l, the same contention was also raised before the Commis-
sion without any result. It was also brought to the notice of the Commission
that in an identical case in Civil Appeal Nos.1566-67 of 1997 arising out
of S.L.P ( C ) Nos.26021-22 of 1995 titled Bihar State Housing Board &           c
Ors. v. Vijay Sharan & Ors. disposed of on I 7.2.1997, this Court held that
the respondents are entitled to interest @ 5% under Regulation 45 of the
Regulation instead of awarded interest @ 11 %. This Court further pointed
out that when the Regulation fixed the rate of interest, the Commission could
not give a direction to pay the interest contrary to the interest regulated by   D
the statute.

      It is noticed that in the impugned order while affirming the Award of
interest @ 18% awarded by the District Forum and the State Consumer
Commission, the National Commission referred to the interest awarded @
18% by the Commission in the case of HUDA v. Darsh Kumar. Awa,ding               E
of interest@ 18% by the National Commission in Darsh Kumar (supr,a) was
considered by this Court in the case of Ghaziabad Developme•t Authority
v. Balbir Singh, [2004] 5 SCC 65, where this Court deprecated the Award
of 18% interest at a flat rate after threadbare discussion. It was held in
paragraph l 0 of the judgment as under:-                                         F
         "As has been set out hereinabove, the National Forum has been
         awarding interest at a flat rate of 18% per annum irrespective of
         the facts of each case. This, in our view, is unsustainable. Award
         of compensation must be under different separate heads and must
         vary from· case to case depending on the facts of each case."           G

      Learned counsel for the appellant contended and in our opinion rightly,
that the Commission should not have travelled beyond the interest regulated
by the statutory regulation, which fixed at 5% and awarding 18% interest
dehors the Regulation 45 of the said Regulation. In the instant case, in the     H
    822                  SUPREME COURT REPORTS (2005] SUPP. 2 S.C.R.

A   Regulation itself namely Regulation 45 provides that the simple interest @
    5% will be payable on the money so deposited. The Regulation being self-
    contained and the interest payable under the Regulation being regulated by
    the statute under Regulation 45 of the Bihar State Housing Board Regula-
    tion, the Commission should not have travelled beyond the pale of statutory
B   Regulation, apart from awarding interest @18% at the flat rate being dep-
    recated by this Court in Balbir Singh (supra).

          For the reasons aforestated, the impugned orders are not sustainable
    in law and they are being quashed and set-aside. The respondent is entitled
    to interest @ 5% as envisaged under the Regulation 45. The Award of
C   compensation ofRs.5000·is also set-aside. The appeal is allowed. No costs.

    D.G.                                                       Appeal allowed.