Residents protest ‘arbitrary’ fee hike at DLF City Club
Up in arms against the developer, members of the DLF City Club in Phase IV have launched a drive to protest an alleged arbitrary fee hike. The annual subscription has been increased from Rs 7,500 for 2009/10 to Rs 18,000 for 2011/12. Moreover, unlike several other clubs in Delhi and the NCR, there is no concession for senior citizens.
Up in arms against the developer, members of the DLF City Club in Phase IV have launched a drive to protest an alleged arbitrary fee hike. The annual subscription has been increased from Rs 7,500 for 2009/10 to Rs 18,000 for 2011/12. Moreover, unlike several other clubs in Delhi and the NCR, there is no concession for senior citizens.
The protesting members have accused the developer of monopolistic practices and have launched a website — cityclubmembersissue@gmail.com — to garner support for their movement. "We have not registered our association but in the past 15 days, as many as 120 residents have joined us by paying a nominal fee of R200 and several others have expressed interest in joining the movement," said Brij Bharadwaj, a senior member of the club.
The DLF Club management, however, has denied the allegation. "This fee hike is arbitrary manner at all. Our prime concern is to maintain certain standards and provide the best facilities to the club members. The annual fee is nominal when compared to other clubs in Delhi and the NCR," said Rohit Malik, an official in the DLF Management.
The protesting members, however, also accused the club officials of turning a deaf ear to their woes. They held two meetings with PK Chopra, the chief executive officer (CEO) of the DLF Recreational Foundation.
"He said our issue will be addressed shortly. But later he stopped taking our calls. Even now, the management, including the club manager and other officials, has not given us an opportunity to discuss the matter across the table," alleged another club member Kumar Bakhru.
When contacted by HT, Chopra refused to comment on the issue.