Residents of Parsvnath Exotica in Gurugram in tussle over residents’ welfare association polls

On July 12, the RWA announced fresh elections for August, eliciting criticism from the residents who have been excluded from voter rolls.

Following the announcement of fresh elections to the residents’ welfare association (RWA) of Parsvnath Exotica, a condominium on the Golf Course Road in Sector 53, a group of about 300 residents, who have been excluded from the voting list, have said that the election order contradicts a stay issued by the district registrar of firms and societies.

Senior functionaries in the RWA, which currently has about 450 members, however said they do not consider the aggrieved residents to be legitimate property owners. (Parveen Kumar/HT File Photo)

District registrar of firms and societies Ishwar Chand Yadav, however, has assured that the membership issue would be settled before the elections are conducted under the observation of a returning officer (RO).

On April 12, Yadav had granted a stay on RWA elections to a group of aggrieved residents in response to a dispute over membership to the residents’ association. While this group maintains that they have paid the requisite fee and should be considered bonafide members and given attendant voting rights, the RWA contends that these residents are not eligible to participate in its workings as they do not have occupancy certificates provided by the developer.

On July 12, the RWA announced fresh elections for August, eliciting criticism from the residents who have been excluded from voter rolls. “The registrar’s stay on the elections is still in effect. How can elections be announced without first resolving the dispute?” Yash Handa, a complainant in the matter, said.

On Wednesday, Yadav told HT, “The election cannot proceed without first resolving the membership dispute. However, as the RWA requested me to appoint a returning officer to conduct the elections, I have appointed one. An official order will be issued soon and the RO will help in resolving the membership issue prior to the elections.”

Senior functionaries in the RWA, which currently has about 450 members, however said they do not consider the aggrieved residents to be legitimate property owners.

“The only people who can vote in the RWA elections are owners. To be one, you need to have signed a title deed with the builder after receiving an occupancy certificate for the apartment. This is written clearly in the Haryana Registration and Regulation of Societies (HRRS) Act, 2012,” said one member, requesting anonymity. “Without a title deed, which is what most of the complainants lack, you simply cannot vote,” he added.

The aggrieved residents, on the other hand, have challenged this interpretation of the law. MK Ghai, another complainant, said, “In some cases, people who have occupancy certificates but have not signed the conveyance deeds with the developer are being denied their right to vote. However, that is the fault of the developer. Why should such resident be barred from the RWA?”

Ghai added that there is no clause in the HRRS Act that mandates possession of occupancy certificates to be eligible for voting.

SS Anand, an RWA representative, said, “The matter is currently with the registrar of societies, who has of his own discretion decided to appoint a returning officer to conduct free and fair elections. We will go ahead as per his instructions and the RO’s.”

The HT also reached out to a representative of the developer but did not receive a response to queries on the matter.