Indiabulls Real Estate Found Guilty Of Profiteering, To Refund Homebuyers

The National Anti-profiteering Authority has found Indiabulls Real Estate Ltd. guilty of not passing on over Rs 6.46 crore input tax credit benefits to homebuyers by commensurate reduction in prices post rollout of Goods and Services Tax.

Based on a case filed by a homebuyer that Indiabulls Real Estate has not passed on ITC benefits in project Sierra-Vizag, situated in Visakhapatnam, the Directorate General of Anti-Profiteering investigated the case and found the builder guilty of profiteering.

The DGAP found that the real estate firm benefitted from additional ITC post the introduction of GST between July 1, 2017, and March 31, 2019, and over Rs 6.46 crore should be passed on to the buyers in the project.

“The Authority finds that the Respondent has profiteered by an amount of Rs 6,46,06,227 for ‘Sierra Vizag’ during the period of investigation,” NAA said in an order dated June 24. “The amount that has been profiteered by the respondent from the homebuyers in the said project shall be refunded by him, along with interest at the rate of 18% there on, from the date when the above amount was profiteered by him till the date of such payment.”

The profiteered amount has to be passed on to homebuyers within three months.