Supreme Court: Homebuyers can Peacefully Protest Against Developers for Delays

Homebuyers have the right to peacefully protest builders over their complaints, the Supreme Court declared on April 17, and such actions do not constitute defamation. The Court stressed that the right to free speech protects the expression of consumer dissatisfaction through peaceful protests or non-abusive banners.

A group of homebuyers who had put up a sign outside the developer's property pointing out the subpar construction quality had their criminal defamation lawsuits dismissed. According to the Court, customers who use polite language to voice their complaints about the service provider cannot be punished for exercising their rights.

 A bench of Justices K V Viswanathan and N Kotiswar Singh said, We find that the manner of the protest resorted to by the appellants was peaceful and orderly and without in any manner using offensive or abusive language. It could not be said that the appellants crossed the lakshman rekha and transgressed into the offending zone”.

“Right to protest peacefully without falling foul of the law is a corresponding right, which the consumers ought to possess just as the seller enjoys his right to commercial speech. Any attempt to portray them as criminal offences, when the necessary ingredients are not made out, would be a clear abuse of process and should be nipped in the bud," observed the bench as per a report filed by Livelaw.

The bench noted, “The top court observed "no foul" or intemperate language used by the homebuyers against the developer. There is no reference to any expression like 'fraud, cheating, misappropriation', etc. In mild and temperate language, certain issues, which the appellants perceived as their grievances have been aired”.

The bench added that, "The banner sets out that one of the issues was ignoring grievances implying thereby that there have been running issues between the two something which is bound to occur in a builder-buyer relationship.