One flat one vote is the law. Any owner owns multiple units then more voting right. Cant help it.
I am having a commercial property in hyderabad. We are yet to form an association for this society and we are unable to do so since we have 2 groups having different ideas on voting rights to form the association. 1. Group for people who own units between 5000 to 20000 sqft. It could be one or multiple units they own. 2. Owners who own between 300 sqft and 3000 sqft. Mostly single owner max. Since the building has different dimensions of units group 1 says the most no. of sqft the members owns will have that many votes. Group 2 says, it should not be by sqft instead it should by the no. of units an owner owns? I looked at some forums and they say 1 unit 1 vote. but these are for housing societies with same dimensions or little different Please advice how should be proceed and what is the right association act should our society apply to form the assoication?
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Register your association as cooperative society
adopt bye laws wherein each unit has only one vote irrespective of size of unit
The voting rights of members of an association cannot be based on the area of the dwelling unit or commercial space. For each member there can be only one vote.
Voting right should be on the basis of unit only and not on the basis of size of unit. 1 Unit = 1 Vote.
Can the bye-laws of a co-operative housing society curtail the voting rights of different members of a holding separate flats in the building? No, says the supreme court: it's one flat, one vote.
On November 2, 2007, Justice S B Sinha and Justice Harjit Singh Bedi held that Section 27 of the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act 1960 Act clearly provides for one vote per member.
The court observed that even though the objective behind "one family, one vote" may be laudable, it is necessary to see whether such a concept is provided for under the act. The court held that when the legislative act provided for it, no bye-law could create another concept to defeat the legislative intent.
The appeal filed by the society agaisnt the dismissal of appeal by Bombay high court before supreme court was dismissed.
Therefore the group 2 which states that one unit per member for the voting rights is correct.
Thanks for your answers and it helped. I have a owner belonging to the group 1 (more than 20000 sqft), he is mentioning that our building is unique and under Telangana act 1987, Section 2 and section14 and sub section f under the https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/8604/1/act_29_of_1987.pdf states the following the following in the Apartments Act in sub section f of section 14. “(f) value of the property and of each apartment, and the percentage of undivided interest in the common areas and the facilities appurtaining to each apartment and its owner for all purposes, including voting;” could you please confirm does this states the voting right?
It does state voting right
section 14 deals with contents of declaration
14. (1) The Declaration referred to in section 2 shall be submitted in the office of the competent authority in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed and shall contain full and true particulars of the following, namely:-
(a) description of the land on which the building and improvements are or are to be located, and whether the land is free hold or lease hold;
(b) description of the building stating the number of storeys and basements, the number of apartments and the principal materials of which it is or is to be constructed;
(c) the number of each apartment and a statement of its location, approximate areas, number of rooms and the immediate common area to which it has access and any other data necessary for its proper identification;
(d) description of the common areas and facilities;
(e) description of the common areas and facilities, if any, stating to which apartments, their use is reserved;
Encumbrances against apartments.
Common profits and expenses.
Contents of Declaration.
[Act No.29 of 1987] 11
(f) value of the property and of each apartment, and the percentage of undivided interest in the common areas and the facilities appurtaining to each apartment and its owner for all purposes, including voting;
No, the stated clause does not give any voting right but it clarify that with each unit I.e.flat voting right is attached.
The clause mentioned in your subsequent post of this thread do not give any extra voting power to the owner having more extent of UDS than the owner having lesser extent.
The provisions of law stated is declaratory in nature about the issues pertaining to the issues pertaining to common areas.
The Supreme court rules of one unit one vote prevails without any doubt.
Dear client,
Yes, Section 14(f) of the Telangana Apartments Act, 1987 provides for the percentage of undivided interest in the common areas and facilities appurtenant to each apartment and its owner for all purposes, including voting. However, it does not specify the method of determining voting rights.
In the absence of any specific provisions in the bylaws of the association or the Telangana Apartments Act, 1987, it is generally advisable to follow the principle of 'one unit, one vote'. This principle ensures that each unit owner has an equal say in the affairs of the association, regardless of the size or number of units owned. It is a fair and democratic method of voting and is commonly followed in most housing societies and apartment associations in India.
However, you may seek the guidance of a local property lawyer to check if there are any specific provisions under the Act or local laws that may apply to your case. The lawyer can help you draft the bylaws of the association and ensure that they are in compliance with the applicable laws.