HC rejects claim for 8,300-sq m constructed space in Pratibha Tower

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court has rejected a woman’s demand for around 8,300 square metres of constructed space in the redeveloped building of controversial Pratibha Tower in Malabar Hill, observing that membership of a cooperative housing society cannot be granted to any person in respect of a stand-alone parking space or garage

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court has rejected a woman’s demand for around 8,300 square metres of constructed space in the redeveloped building of controversial Pratibha Tower in Malabar Hill, observing that membership of a cooperative housing society cannot be granted to any person in respect of a stand-alone parking space or garage.

A single-judge bench of Justice Sandeep Marne said under the Maharashtra Cooperative Societies Act, membership can be claimed only in respect of a ‘flat’ and since a garage or car parking space is not covered by definition of the term ‘flat’ no membership can be granted in respect of mere car parking space.

The court, therefore, rejected Minoo Gowani’s plea for reserving an area of around 8,300 sq m in the redeveloped building. She had approached the court contending that she was a member of the erstwhile Pratibh CHS, now known as Saidale CHS, as her father had purchased a shop and entire lower-level podium with 22 parking garages, in the building in her name, when she was a minor and had obtained share certificates of the CHS as well.

Gowani said the society and the developer had not taken her membership into consideration and development plans had been submitted to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) without providing alternative accommodation in lieu of the premises she owned. She, therefore, urged the court to order the developer to reserve appropriate constructed space in lieu of her shop and entire lower-level podium.

The society and the builder opposed her plea, contending that she was never a member of the society and her name does not reflect in statutory registers – that is, registers I and J – considered primary documents as proof of membership. Without them, share certificates are meaningless.

They also pointed out that the share certificates were issued to Gowani when the society was without a valid managing committee. She was 14 years old at the time and could not have been admitted as a member, as minors can’t be members of a CHS.

However, the court noted that the share certificates were signed by the then chairperson and secretary of the society and although her claim was “weak”, the court could not throw it out at interim stage. It therefore ordered the developer to reserve 896 sq feet of constructed area in the new building, in lieu of her shop.

The court, however, refused to grant her any relief as regards the entire lower-level podium, saying, a garage or a car parking space does not have any independent existence and can be allotted only for the purpose of better enjoyment of the flat in the building. “I am of the prima-facie view that plaintiff (Gowani) could not have been granted any membership qua (as regards) 22 garages,” the court said.

Symbol of corruption

Work on Pratibha Tower, once regarded as a symbol of corruption, had begun in 1984. Among the original buyers were high net-worth individuals, some NRIs and private firms. The work was, however, stopped by BMC when the skeleton had risen to the 36th floor, following allegations of irregularities in FSI consumption. Eventually, the BMC demolished eight upper floors of the skeleton in 1989. Then, in an extraordinary general body meeting in April 2019, the society decided to redevelop the property, after which the remaining portions of the skeleton were brought down and in March 2022, a builder was appointed to redevelop the property.