• RWA penalizing tenant for previous dues by owner

We are tenants in a property and we have been paying maintenance charge on time since our tenancy (2 years). However the landlord owes around 2L to the apartment management committee which is under dispute and was being handled between the MC and landlord so far. Now the MC has stopped housekeeping from collecting our garbage until the dues are cleared by the landlord. They may also stop us from using other amenities like the clubhouse , gym, etc. When questioned they claim it’s our responsibility to convince the landlord to pay the dues. Is it legal to harass and victimize the tenant who has been paying all dues? What is the legal recourse we can take in case the landlord and MC don’t reach an solution and we continue to get harassed?
Asked 2 years ago in Property Law
Religion: Hindu

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7 Answers

1. Bring this harassment you are facing from the MC on account of non-clearance of dues   by the landlord.

2.  If there's no response from the landlord, send a legal notice to the landlord for resolving the issue.

Shashidhar S. Sastry
Advocate, Bangalore
5624 Answers
339 Consultations

Society has to sue the flat owner to recover dues not penalise the tenant 

 

File police complaint against MC under section 504, 506 of IPC for failure to collect your garbage , threatening to stop access to clubhouse , gym etc 

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
99826 Answers
8148 Consultations

RWA cannot penalize the tenant

In fact it is duty of the landlord to protect his tenant's interests.

If there's a dispute between the association and the landlord then the association has to take legal action against the landlord for default of arrears of earlier maintenance charges and cannot curtail amenities to tenant.

It is criminal offence besides condemnable.

You can approach civil court seeking permanent injunction against the association in this regard and also for restoration of disconnected services.

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
90028 Answers
2497 Consultations

If th Rules/Regulations governing such RWA allows such steps against the defaulters then the Management committee can take such measures.

Else file case against the Committee for restoring such services. 

Another option is to deduct your rent from the landlord to adjust such harassments. 

Devajyoti Barman
Advocate, Kolkata
23655 Answers
537 Consultations

It is not legal you can file consumer case against the society for restoration of service. Its duty of the society to recover it from the landlord without your interference 

Prashant Nayak
Advocate, Mumbai
34549 Answers
249 Consultations

Dear Client, 

Should your rental agreement include that the landlord is responsible for maintenance costs and they have neglected to do so, you ought to notify the landlord that they are in violation of your agreement. Send your landlord a letter outlining the necessary payments for repairs. Give your landlord a deadline in a follow-up letter if you don't receive a satisfactory response to your initial correspondence. If you are still not happy with your landlord's response, you can send another letter letting him know that you plan to take the matter up with the local council in the event that he fails to pay the maintenance charge. It may be against the applicable housing society or apartment association rules and bylaws for homeowners in an apartment complex to neglect to pay maintenance fees. Depending on the kind of organisation, the state's Apartment Ownership Act or Cooperative Society Act may be violated if the apartment complex is registered under the applicable state legislation and maintenance fees are not paid. The organisation may pursue legal action against defaulters and is authorised by these Acts to levy maintenance fees from flat owners. In addition, the association has the authority to charge late fees or interest. Should the failure to pay maintenance fees continue, the association may pursue legal action against the defaulters, including bringing a lawsuit in civil court to recoup the unpaid balances. In these situations, the association may file a claim for recovery with the court and pursue legal action to recoup the outstanding funds, which may include selling and seizing the defaulter's assets. 

Hope this answer proves beneficial to you.

Anik Miu
Advocate, Bangalore
11020 Answers
125 Consultations

- In the absence of any contract to the contrary between the owner and the tenant, the tenant is bound to pay the maintenance charges. 

- Further, you are accountable to pay the maintenance charges from the date of agreement and not for previous dues , and legally no case is made out against tenant for the recovery of the previous dues. 

- You can lodge a complaint before the management of the society that the amount is recoverable from the owner and not tenant. 

- If no positive response, then you can get relief after filing a suit before the court , and if they are harassing then file a complaint before the police .and to the registrar of the society , and a non-member of the society can also file a complaint before the registrar 

Mohammed Shahzad
Advocate, Delhi
15821 Answers
242 Consultations

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