water is essential service and cannot be disconnected by society
2) ask owner to file police complaint against society office bearers
Society cutting water supply due to non-payment of dues
I am a tenant residing in gated villa community. I am paying my monthly maintainence charges promptly. The owner has pending dues from corpus funds and previous maintainence charges. The society has sent notice to owner as well as tenant threatenning to cut water supply if dues are not cleared. As a tenant, I will suffer if water connection is cut. What can I do? Can they cut water supply? Is it legal?
Asked 3 years ago in Constitutional Law
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12 Answers
it is not permissible for the society to cut off water supply to the owner or tenant for non-payment of dues. However, the society may take steps to recover the dues from the owner or tenant as per the provisions of the applicable law. The society may also file a suit in the court for recovery of the dues. The court may then pass an appropriate order directing the owner or tenant to pay the dues. In such a situation, the tenant may seek legal advice from a competent lawyer.
The society cannot curtail the basic amenities, water supply comes under basic amenities.
The tenant can move to court after issuing a legal notice to the society about this and obtain an order of injunction restraining the society from indulging in such illegal activities and provide the relief sought for.
Dear Sir,
It is the settled law that basic necessities like water and electricity supply can't be disconnected under any circumstances. If there are payment dues then management may go to civil court by filing recovery suit.
Anticipating that the Society may cut the water supply can the Tenant/Owner do any proactive action to deter the society from doing so and cause inconvenience to Tenant and family.
Asked 3 years ago
Send reply to society that water is essential service and cannot be disconnected by society for non payment of alleged dues
file poluce complaint against society office bearers
The tenant/owner could file a police complaint or a civil court, seeking a restraining order against the society for disconnecting the water supply. The tenant/owner could also contact the local housing authority to bring the matter to their attention and possibly seek a resolution.
Anticipating the disconnection of water supply, the tenant can move a civil court with a suit for injunction and also an application in the same suit for temporary injunction till the disposal of the main suit on the same lines.
- As per Supreme Court, No society is entitled to disconnect or suspend common amenities including water supply, and only can issue a legal notice to the defaulter and if he does not pay the same, then approach the court for recovering the dues of maintenance.
- Hence, if any owner is not paying the maintenance charges, it is open to the association to demand the same from the defaulting member in accordance with law, but cannot connect the essential services like electrify and water supply.
- You can lodge a compliant against the society before the registrar
- Further,, you can also file a suit before the court for restrain the society to cut the water supply.
They can't cut water supply they can only recover the same through procedure established by law.
Dear client,
In general, if the owner of the property has unpaid dues for the corpus fund and previous maintenance charges, the society may have the right to take legal action against the owner to recover the outstanding amounts. The society may also have the right to cut off the water supply to the property if the owner fails to pay the outstanding dues.
However, as a tenant, you may have certain legal rights and protections, and cutting off the water supply to your property could be considered a violation of those rights. In some cases, tenants may be able to take legal action against the society or the owner of the property to prevent the water supply from being cut off.
To protect your rights, you may want to consider taking the following steps:
Contact the owner: If you have a good relationship with the owner, you may want to speak with them directly and encourage them to pay the outstanding dues to prevent the water supply from being cut off.
Contact the society: You may want to contact the society and explain that you are a tenant and that you may suffer if the water supply is cut off. You may be able to negotiate a payment plan or find a solution that does not involve cutting off the water supply.
Seek legal advice: If you are concerned about your legal rights and the potential consequences of a water supply cutoff, you may want to seek legal advice from a qualified attorney in your jurisdiction. They can advise you on your legal rights and options, and may be able to help you prevent the water supply from being cut off.
In any case, it is important to act quickly and proactively to protect your rights and interests.
It is illegal to cut off water or electricity connection by the society members even in case of non payment of dues as the same has been held by the honorable Supreme Court of India.
File a complaint with the Deputy Registrar of Societies.
No society has any power to disconnect water supply legally. File a suit against the society and its office bearers along with a petition praying for an urgent injunction order restraining the society from going ahead with its evil designs, in consultation with a competent lawyer.
