NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday said it is time to review the constitution of all state real estate regulatory authorities as the body is doing nothing but facilitating defaulting builders.
RERA is doing nothing but facilitating defaulting manufacturers: SCA bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Jayamalya Bagchi said the people for whom RERA was framed were “totally dejected, disgusted and disappointed” and asserted that it would not mind if the institution was abolished.
The observations came from the bench, which allowed the Himachal Pradesh government to shift the office of RERA to a place of its choice.
The bench issued notice on a petition filed by the Himachal Pradesh government and others challenging the Himachal Pradesh High Court’s order regarding the shifting of the state RERA office from Shimla to Dharamshala.
The High Court had earlier stayed a June 2025 notification regarding the transfer of RERA offices until further orders.
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Later, in its order passed on December 30, 2025, the High Court directed the continuance of the interim order.
The Supreme Court stayed the High Court’s order of December 30.
“Except to facilitate builders in default, this institution is doing nothing. It is better to abolish this institution, we do not object to that,” the CJI said.
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The bench said, “…all states should reconsider and even reconsider the constitution of this authority.”
In its petition filed in the Supreme Court through advocate Sugandha Anand, the state said the decision to shift the Himachal Pradesh RERA office from Shimla to Dharamshala was taken to “shrink” Shimla city, and was purely on administrative discretion.
Senior advocate Madhavi Divan, appearing for the state, told the bench about the issue and said, “It is about RERA, which we want to transfer to Dharamshala”.
A lawyer, appearing for the respondent, said that 90 per cent of the projects contracted by the authority are in Shimla, Solan, Parwanu and Sirmaur, which are within a maximum radius of 40 km.
He said that around 92 percent of the complaints pending before RERA are from these districts alone, and Dharamshala has only 20 projects.
When the bench was informed that a retired IAS officer was appointed to RERA, the CJI said, “In every state, it has become a rehabilitation centre. All these authorities have been usurped by these people.”
“Those for whom this institution was created, are totally depressed, bored and frustrated. None of them are getting effective relief. Whom this institution is actually serving now, you will know when you meet these people,” the CJI said.
The apex court also observed that Shimla was “totally exhausted”.
While issuing notice on the petition, the bench said, “The State is permitted to shift the office of RERA to a place of its choice. However, this shall be subject to the final outcome of the writ petition pending in the High Court”.
The Advocate General of Himachal Pradesh told the bench that, as per a policy decision, the state is developing Palampur, Dharamsala and other towns.
The CJI asked, “What is the logic of having a retired bureaucrat? How can he help in the development of Palampur. You have to hire some architect who is eco-friendly, who knows Palampur area, Dharamshala area and all these areas. Only those people will help”.
The bench was also informed that the District Judge, Shimla, hears appeals against orders passed by RERA.
“To ensure that persons affected by the order of RERA do not face any inconvenience in visiting Shimla for the purpose of filing appeals, it is further directed that the appellate jurisdiction may be transferred from the Principal District Judge, Shimla, to the Principal District Judge, Dharamshala,” the bench said.
On February 9, in a separate matter, the Supreme Court set aside the Himachal Pradesh High Court’s interim order staying the state government’s decision to shift the OBC Commission from Shimla to Dharamshala.
The apex court held that such issues relate to policy decisions and do not generally fall under the judicial domain.
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