The Hindu : New Delhi News : ‘Authorities trying to thwart Apartment Act’

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Monday, Sep 03, 2007
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New Delhi

‘Authorities trying to thwart Apartment Act’

Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar

They are sticking to Delhi Cooperative Societies Act as it suits certain vested interests: residents’ body

DAO Act was passed by Parliament in 1986
Its implementation may cause huge revenue loss

‘NEW DELHI: Realising that implementation of the Delhi Apartment Ownership Act 1986 in toto could lead to a revenue loss of nearly Rs. 10,000 crore by way of lease money that is being wrongly collected from nearly 5 lakh apartment owners, the Union Urban Development Ministry, the Delhi Government and the Delhi Development Authority have been collectively trying to thwart the Act that has been brought on statute book by Parliament, received the President’s assent and was published in the Gazette of India over two decades ago.

In a complaint to the Central Information Commissioner, Sanjiv Kumar of the Delhi Resident’s Front has charged that the Ministry has been deliberately furnishing misleading and irrelevant information regarding the status of the Act that seeks to empower lakhs of residents living in Cooperative Group Housing Societies, DDA flats and even plotted houses that have been developed in the form of flats.

In response to a detailed application filed on the subject, the Ministry had acknowledged that the DAO Act 1986 was brought on statute book by Parliament, received the President’s assent and was published in the gazette. But still it maintained that “enforcement of the Act met with practical difficulties as various quarters including the DDA and Delhi Administration expressed problems in implementation of the Act”. “While not being able to furnish a satisfactory reply on why the Act has not been enforced, the Ministry has squarely lied about the rules along with the bye-laws for the Act being notified,” Mr Kumar said, adding that while the Ministry has stated that “the notification was not issued,” the fact remain that the Land and Building Department had notified the Act on March 26, 1991, by publishing it in the Gazette, It had also stated that the by-laws would be called the “Model Bye-laws of Delhi Apartment Owners Association 1991”.

Charging that the Union Ministry and the Delhi Government were not serious about the welfare of the people and were adamant on sticking to the Delhi Cooperative Societies Act for the apartment owners as it suited certain vested interests, Mr. Kumar said this was the prime reason why “they have allowed the executive to sit over the wisdom of legislature, pointing out deficiencies in a duly enforced legislation as a pretext for not implementing the legislation itself”. Incidentally, he said, while the Ministry was silent on the names of the officials who have advised that the DAO Act 1986 not be implemented, the Delhi High Court has in over 10 cases made clear reference to the Act being in “full force” and also pointed out that valuable rights accrue to the apartment owners through it.

Seeking that the rights of the citizens not be trampled upon, he said it was also worthy of note that the DDA had in the brochure for the Two and Three Bedroom Housing Scheme of 2006 mentioned that “every successful applicant is required to become a member of the Registered Agency/Association of Apartment Owners to be formed for the purpose of maintenance of common portions and common services.” This being the case, the Front has demanded that the Act be enforced fully to provide equal voting and residential rights to all flat owners.

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