India, Dec. 31 -- The Delhi Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) has directed a real estate developer to pay delayed possession charges ranging from approximately Rs.55 lakh to over Rs.83 lakh within 45 days to four homebuyers who have been waiting for their commercial shops for nearly 16 years.

In two separate orders delivered on December 5, a bench comprising Anand Kumar (chairperson), Devesh Singh and Ajay Kumar Kuhar (members) directed the builder to pay interest at 10.8% per annum, holding that the delay amounted to a "gross breach of contractual and statutory obligations", causing "severe financial and mental hardship" to the buyers.

The case pertains to the Central Square Complex at Bara Hindu Rao in northwest Delhi, where the...