In a key decision for property owners, Mumbai’s Co-operative Court has stopped a housing society from charging maintenance fees based on the size of the property. The court instructed the society to switch to a per-unit billing system until a final ruling on the matter is made.
This order came after advocate Abha Singh contested the Trade World Premises Co-operative Housing Society Limited (CHSL) for its decision to charge her based on square footage.
Judge SK Devkar stated, “The opposing society and its members are prohibited from charging or collecting fees from the complainant based on the size of the property until the dispute is resolved. They may only bill on a per unit or flat basis.”
Advocate Aditya Pratap, representing Singh, pointed out that the housing society was not following a directive from the Government of Maharashtra, which requires maintenance fees to be shared equally among all residents, no matter their flat size. The Bombay High Court had backed this rule, noting that there was no fair reason to charge larger flats more for communal services.
Pratap emphasized that the society’s billing was unfair, making owners of larger flats pay too much for shared services like security, electricity, and upkeep of communal spaces. The court agreed, finding no justification for the society’s method of billing.
The court noted that the housing society had appeared but did not submit a response or a written statement. Because the society “failed to present an argument,” the judge moved forward with the case without input from them.
“Consequently, a negative inference can be drawn against the opposing society,” the judge remarked.
In a thorough ruling, the Judge pointed out that the housing society did not follow the government’s directive from April 29, 2000, which clearly states that maintenance fees should be shared equally among all units in registered co-operative housing societies.
“I have closely examined the bills. It seems that the maintenance fees change from month to month without explanation. This indicates that the society is charging based on square footage,” the judge noted.
Additionally, the court referenced the Bombay High Court’s ruling, which affirmed that societies cannot set maintenance or service fees according to the size of individual flats.