Members often find themselves at odds with their cooperative housing societies (CHS/the Society) over unclear procedures and arbitrary decisions. This week’s questions reflect such everyday challenges faced by flat-owners. From Societies refusing to accept members’ letters or issuing unsigned notices, to questions about the legality of changing the order of joint ownership on share certificates, readers continue to face issues that stem from poor governance and disregard for co-operative bye-laws.
I am also addressing a case where a Society in Pune has wrongly denied a father the right to purchase another plot in the same CHS, revealing how misconceptions about membership rules often create unnecessary obstacles.
As always, I will try and clarify what the bye-laws actually say and explain how members can seek redress through the deputy registrar of cooperative societies (DR-CS) when Societies overstep their authority.
When Societies Refuse Communication or Send Unsigned Letters
Question: I have the following queries regarding the working of my CHS:
- The Society, at its discretion, refuses to accept letters or communications from some members, whether submitted by hand or sent by speed post. If submitted by hand, the office staff verbally refuses to accept the letter, leaving no proof of refusal. If the same letter is sent by speed post, the Society refuses to accept it. Is the Society justified in such actions? What remedy does the aggrieved member have? How can the member prove that the Society refused acceptance of such communication?
- The Society sometimes sends communications to some members on the Society letterhead, but without a signature, name, or designation of the official who drafted the letter. The letter simply ends with 'SPT Office'.
Answer: (1) If your Society refuses to receive a letter sent by speed post and it is returned to you, do not tear open the cover. Keep a photocopy of the letter (which you have retained for your records) and make a complaint against the Society to the DR-CS under Bye-law No. 174(A)(xxii).
(2) If the Society issues unsigned letters to members without the Society’s rubber stamp, you should also make a complaint to the DR-CS under Bye-law No. 174(A)(xxii), attaching a copy of such a letter.
Legality of Changing Joint Ownership Order on a Flat’s Share Certificate
Question: A husband and wife are joint-holders of a flat in a CHS in Mumbai. The wife is alive, but the husband has passed away. Their son, who is also the secretary of the Society, has had the share certificate changed—his name added as the second holder and his widowed mother (who was the joint-holder with his father) as the first holder. Is this legal?
In another case, a wife and husband are joint-holders of another flat in a CHS in Mumbai. The wife’s name appears first and she is alive. The husband has passed away, and the son, who is the secretary of the Society, has had the share certificate changed—his name added as the first holder and his widowed mother (the original first holder) as the second holder. Is this legal?
Answer: In the first case, if the son and mother together execute a release deed on Rs500 non-judicial stamp paper (purchased in the mother’s name), and the signatures of both are witnessed by two witnesses, the deed must then be registered with the sub-registrar of assurances (registration fee: Rs1,000). A certified copy of the registered release deed and its Index-II should be submitted to the Society along with a co-membership form in Appendix-5. After this, the son’s name can be added as the second name on the share certificate.
In the second case, the same procedure as above should be followed for this case as well, allowing the son’s name to be added as the second name. However, to make the son’s name appear as the first name, in both cases, the mother and son must jointly approach the cooperative court to change the order of names on the share certificate.
Transfer of Flat on Collector’s Land without Prior Approval
Question: I have a plot in a CHS in Pune in the joint name of my father and me. I am the first owner (Society member) of the plot and the share certificates are issued in my name, while my father is registered as an associate member in the Society records.
My father wants to purchase a new plot in the same CHS in his own name, but the Society is denying an NOC stating that he is already an associate member. Is this stand by the Society correct? Is my father not legally allowed to purchase a new plot in the same CHS?
I also put up the following proposal before the Society:
- My father will execute a gift deed in my favour for the existing plot.
- We will provide the gift deed and Index II to the Society so they can update their records and remove my father’s name as an associate member.
- My father will then purchase a new plot in the same CHS.
The Society has denied this proposal too, saying that blood relatives (such as father and son) are not allowed to purchase plots in the same CHS. I want to know if this action by the Society is legal. If not, what action can I take against the Society?
Answer: Whatever your Society says is incorrect. If your Society is governed by the bye-laws applicable to a flat owners’ co-operative housing society (as per the 2014 model bye-laws), then bye-law no. 60 clearly allows a member to hold an additional flat or property in the same society if he needs one.
In your case, your father is only an associate member and is, therefore, legally allowed to buy another plot in the same Society in his own name.
Ask the Society, in writing, to show you the specific bye-law (from the Society’s adopted bye-law book) that prohibits two family members from owning separate plots in the same Society. If they fail to produce such a rule, you can file a written complaint with the DR—CS in your area. The deputy registrar has the authority to direct the Society to allow your father to buy another property in the same CHS.
NOTE
We will not be answering queries posted in the comments. Only questions sent through the Moneylife Foundation's Legal Helpline will be answered. If you want to seek guidance or ask questions to Mr Shanbhag, kindly send it through Moneylife Foundation's Free Legal Helpline. Here is the link: https://www.moneylife.in/lrc.html#ask-question
Disclaimer: The guidance provided in these columns and on our Legal Helpline is on the sole basis of the facts provided by the reader/questioner and does not amount to formal legal advice in any form whatsoever.
(Shirish Shanbhag has an MSc in Organic Chemistry, a Diploma in Higher Education, and a Diploma in French and has completed his LL.B. in first class in 2021. Before his retirement, he was a junior college teacher at Patkar College from July 1980 to May 2012, teaching theoretical and practical chemistry. Post-retirement in 2012, he started providing guidance and counselling to people on several issues, specifically focusing on cooperative housing society-related matters. He has over 30 years of hands-on experience in all matters about housing societies and can provide out-of-box solutions for any practical issue.)
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