EXCLUSIVE| RERA funds debate: state exchequer or self-sustain?

RERA should deposit penaltiesfees to the state exchequer and the budget for RERArsquos functioning should be decided by the state Assembly The position of RERA chairman is not equivalent to that of a high court judge it is a misconception Additionally the CAG should mandatorily audit RERAs collection of penalties and fees as well as its usage The state government can take appropriate action for misuse of funds if any says Sunil Kumar Singh former IAS officer 1983 batch Bihar cadre and Member AdministrativeTechnical RERA Appellate Tribunal BiharSingh was reacting to Maharashtrarsquos proposed housing policy which states that MahaRERA funds collected through fees and penalties must be deposited in the state exchequer Notably the MahaRERA Bar Association has a different perspective on this issueWhat the proposed housing policy statesThe draft housing policy covers several key issues under the RERA subhead including a adequate staffing b deputation of staff c a bench in each district for complaint redressal and d a consolidated state fund According to the policy fees and penalties collected by MahaRERA should be credited to this fund from which the budget for RERArsquos operations can be allocated as neededRegarding deputation the policy notes that the most important posts in MahaRERA are currently filled on a contractual basis To ensure effective functioning it recommends deputing senior positions from other government departments and establishing districtlevel benches for timely complaint resolutionPrevious rulingsldquoRERA is a parliamentary Act and all states except Union Territories are required to directly deposit collected penalties and fees into the state exchequer as per Section 76 of the RERA Act though some states are not following this Karnataka is one of the few states diligently practising this with the state Assembly approving funds for Karnataka RERA operationsrdquo said Singh to middaySingh further explained that until 2022 Bihar RERA did not follow this practice However the RERA Appellate Tribunal Bihar in a suo motu case ordered Bihar RERA to credit penalties to the state account The new Bihar RERA chairman complied with this order without challenging it in the high courtMandatory CAG auditIt is mandated by statute that the Comptroller and Auditor General CAG audits all state RERA expenditures but this is not practised in many states Often the state RERA chairman typically a retired bureaucrat uses discretionary power over these funds without state oversight State RERA is also required to submit annual reports to both houses of the state legislature Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad but many states fail to comply said SinghRecruitmentOn the recruitment of office bearers Singh clarified State RERA authorities lack the power to make direct appointments Section 28 of RERA specifies that the appropriate government in consultation with the authority may appoint necessary officers and employees to ensure effective operation under the ActConciliationSingh emphasised that conciliation is an effective form of justice if both parties agree with resolutions ideally delivered within 60 days including a RERA judgment if conciliation failsEight years of RERA Evaluating effectivenessldquoItrsquos unfortunate that RERA intended to bring regulation transparency financial discipline citizencentred governance accountability and swift redressal to the real estate sector has been taken less seriously by some state RERAs After eight years itrsquos high time for the Central government to assess RERArsquos effectiveness on the groundrdquo Singh concludedDiffering viewpointAdvocate Anil DSouza Secretary of the MahaRERA Bar Association disagrees with the draft policy recommendations ldquoThe statersquos draft housing policy on RERA is misguided The government should support MahaRERA by appointing more benches and legal teams instead of transferring its funds to the state exchequer which will only undermine it he saidldquoServe the taxpaying public first We oppose transferring MahaRERA funds to the state exchequer Taxpayers have already paid stamp duties litigants have paid court fees and builders and brokers have paid registration fees The present funds since inception in 2017 with MahaRERA is approximately R200 crore Why should this become the state exchequerrsquos revenue rdquo asked DSouzaA better approachDSouza suggested appointing retired Supreme Court and high court judges to head important positions within MahaRERA instead of retired members from government machinery as they bring integrity experience and commitment This would strengthen MahaRERA and make it a robust institution he added