In a landmark judgment with far-reaching implications for homebuyers and developers, the Karnataka High Court has held that an order issued by a Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) does not amount to a civil court decree and therefore cannot be executed through civil execution proceedings. Instead, the enforcement of RERA orders must strictly follow the recovery mechanism prescribed under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016.
The ruling was delivered by a single bench of Justice M. Nagaprasanna, who clarified that the RERA framework is a self-contained code, and its orders do not fulfill the statutory requirements of a decree as defined under Section 2(2) of the Civil Procedure Code (CPC).
RERA Is Not a Civil Court, Says High Court
The High Court observed that although RERA proceedings follow procedures “as if” they were before a civil court, they are not civil suits, and therefore their outcomes cannot become civil court decrees in the classical sense. Justice Nagaprasanna stated that RERA orders:
• Do not originate from a civil suit
• Do not satisfy the statutory definition of a decree
• Cannot be executed under Order XXI of the CPC
• Must be enforced only through the RERA-mandated recovery process
The court emphasized that Section 40(1) of the RERA Act already provides a mechanism for enforcement—recovery through the jurisdictional Revenue Authority, typically the Tahsildar, treating the dues as arrears of land revenue.
Reliance on Judgments from Other High Courts
The order extensively referred to rulings from the:
• Allahabad High Court
• Madhya Pradesh High Court
• Rajasthan High Court
• Calcutta High Court
All of these courts have previously held that administrative tribunal orders cannot be treated as civil court decrees. The Karnataka High Court particularly leaned on the Allahabad High Court’s 2018 ruling in Supertech Ltd, which held that RERA orders do not meet the criteria of a decree under Section 2(2) CPC.
Justice Nagaprasanna noted:
“The order of the Adjudicating Officer or the Appellate Tribunal does not assume the mantle of a decree within the contemplation of Section 2(2) CPC. Such orders cannot traverse the path of execution under Order XXI of the CPC.”
The judgment arose from execution petitions filed by several homebuyers before the Additional City Civil and Sessions Court, Bengaluru, seeking enforcement of RERA orders passed in June and August 2023 against Mantri Developers.
The developer objected, arguing that the civil court lacked jurisdiction, because RERA provides a complete statutory recovery route. However, the civil court rejected these objections, prompting the developer to approach the High Court.
Arguments of the Parties
Developer’s Counsel:
• RERA is not a civil court
• Its orders do not originate from a “suit”
• A RERA order is not a decree
• Enforcement must be done only through the Revenue Authority
• Civil execution proceedings are not maintainable
Homebuyers’ Counsel:
• Buyers were merely seeking enforcement of rights granted under RERA orders
• Civil court execution should be allowed for effective implementation
The High Court, however, sided with the developer, stating that statutory procedure cannot be bypassed.
High Court’s Decision
The Karnataka High Court ruled:
• Execution petitions filed before the civil court were not maintainable
• Civil courts cannot execute RERA or Appellate Tribunal orders
• Only the statutory recovery mechanism under RERA must be used
• The execution proceedings pending before the Bengaluru court were quashed
The court further added that homebuyers must route their claims through the Revenue Authority, which is empowered to recover dues as land revenue arrears.
This ruling significantly impacts how homebuyers in Karnataka can enforce RERA orders. The judgment:
• Clarifies the enforcement route for RERA orders
• Prevents parallel execution proceedings in civil courts
• Strengthens the statutory recovery framework of RERA
• May result in faster or more streamlined recovery through Revenue Authorities
• Aligns Karnataka with other states that have delivered similar rulings
However, it also means that homebuyers cannot use civil courts as an additional enforcement tool, limiting them strictly to RERA’s mechanism for recovery.
