Issues around ownership transfer, joint-holder rights and charges levied by a cooperative housing society (CHS/the Society) continue to cause confusion for many members. While CHS bye-laws provide detailed guidance on what societies can and cannot do, managing committees often follow informal practices or rely on incorrect assumptions, leading to avoidable disputes.
This week’s cases highlight three such situations: the procedure for transferring a shop’s share certificate after the death of a nominee, whether a joint owner’s name can be included on the Society’s name plate and maintenance receipts and the legality of festival charges imposed through a resolution passed in the general body meeting (GBM). Understanding the correct legal process and the limits of a Society’s authority can help members assert their rights effectively and avoid unnecessary harassment or delays.
Transfer of Shop Share Certificate after Mother’s Death
Question: We have a shop in Kharghar, Navi Mumbai. Initially, it was in my father’s name and the nominee was my mother. My father passed away in 2021 and after paying the required charges, CIDCO issued a letter to the Society to transfer the property in my name. The Society did so and made me the nominee. Now my mother has passed away in February 2025. What procedure must be followed to put my name on the share certificate? The previous procedure of CIDCO giving a letter has been stopped. I have two sisters and they are ready to sign any documents for the transfer process. Please advise.
Answer: You should buy a ₹500 non-judicial stamp paper in your name from a government-authorised stamp vendor. On it, you and your two sisters, all three together, with two witnesses, should form a ‘release deed’ and register it at the sub-registrar of assurances office. The registration charges are ₹1,000. Any typist near the sub-registrar’s office will prepare and register the release deed for you for their nominal service charges.
With a copy of the registered release deed and its Index-2 submitted to your housing society, the Society will transfer your mother’s share certificate in your name and, thereafter, all the Society bills will come in your name.
Adding Joint Owner’s Name to Society Name Plate and Maintenance Records
Question: I have purchased a property in Dahisar, Mumbai, under joint ownership with my uncle. In the property agreement, my uncle’s name is the primary name and mine is the secondary name. However, we are both joint owners of the property. The Society has updated the name plate with only the primary owner’s name, i.e., my uncle’s name. I requested that both joint owners’ names be included, but the Society’s managing committee claims that, as per ‘laws’ (they cannot specify which one), only the primary name can appear on the name plate and on maintenance receipts. They said that if I produce a letter from a lawyer citing the law or any case that permits both names, they will reconsider. Is there any law or judgement that I can share with the Society to request that my name be included on the name plate and maintenance receipts?
Answer: If a flat is owned by two or more persons through a joint sale deed or a gift deed, then all names should be written on the name plate in the same order in which the names appear in the deed—provided the joint (second and subsequent) owners submit the form in Appendix-5 and pay the one-time entrance fee of ₹100 by crossed cheque in the name of the Society, to become associate members of the CHS.
If you have not submitted the associate membership form (Appendix-5), please submit it with the ₹100 entrance fee. Once your name appears on the back side of the flat’s share certificate, attach a photocopy of both sides of the share certificate and ask your CHS to write your name below the first-named person on the Society’s name plate for your flat. In your letter (as in Appendix-5), take your uncle’s consent to add your name to the nameplate after his.
You should also visit a few CHS buildings in your neighbourhood. You will find Societies where the second joint owner’s name is included on the name plate. Take photographs of such name plates showing the CHS name clearly. If you visit 10 CHSs, at least two are likely to have both names displayed. Attach photos from at least three to four CHSs to your letter.
If your CHS asks for charges towards the cost and labour of adding your name to the name plate, do not argue—pay by cheque in the Society’s name, even if it is a small amount, or ask them to include it in the next maintenance bill.
If your CHS remains adamant, file a complaint with the deputy registrar of cooperative societies under bye-law no. 174(A)(xxii). Attach your letter requesting the addition of your name, along with the photographs collected from other societies.
Within a month of receiving your complaint, the deputy registrar will issue a letter directing your CHS to add your name, along with your uncle’s, to the name plate of flat-owners, with a copy sent to you for follow-up. There is absolutely no need to seek legal opinion from an advocate, contrary to what your CHS has told you.
Legality of Festival Charges in Housing Societies
Question: My Society has imposed festival charges through a GBM resolution. Are such charges legal? Are they mandatory?
Answer: The monthly maintenance charges that a CHS can levy on its members are clearly stated under different headings in bye-law nos. 66 and 67.
In an order in November 2023, the Bombay High Court ruled that a CHS can levy charges for cultural activities. It says the "CHS bye-law cannot be interpreted in such a manner that there is a restriction on the Society to set up a cultural fund and collect the contribution... and that such a fund (can) be created only from profit earned by the Society.”
According to the HC judgement, bye-law 5(d) specifically provides for such activities as one of the objectives of a housing society. The only prohibition on the collection of such a charge is that it should be approved by the Society’s GBM and it should not contradict provisions of the Maharashtra Cooperative Societies Act.
In your case, the festival fund would fall under the definition of the cultural fund for which the Society has passed a resolution in the GBM. In other words, you need to pay the charges as decided in the GBM.
NOTE
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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, 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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