27 March,2026 09:10 AM IST | Mumbai | Vinod Kumar Menon
Dwarka Flora Residency Phase-2 Co-operative Housing Society in Pune
In a significant ruling, the Bombay High Court, while dismissing a writ petition filed by GK Developers and members of the Bhise family, has held that contractual clauses cannot override the legal rights of flat purchasers, reaffirming that statutory provisions prevail over developer-drafted agreements.
The court made it clear that builders cannot retain long-term control over a property once flats are sold, and that complete ownership must pass to the housing society or residents. The judgment was delivered by Justice Amit Borkar in Writ Petition No. 1647 of 2025, reserved on February 23, 2026, and pronounced on March 17, 2026.
Petitioners:
>> GK Developers and partners
>> Members of the Bhise family (landowners)
Respondents:
>> State of Maharashtra
>> District Deputy Registrar, Pune
>> Dwarka Flora Residency Phase-2 Co-operative Housing Society
Location: Pimple Saudagar, Pune
Development initiated: 2005
Construction: 2 wings, 42 flats + 8 shops
Completion Certificate: December 31, 2010
2010- Apartment condominium formed
2011- Land conveyed to condominium
2022- Shift to cooperative housing society model
>> Society sought unilateral deemed conveyance (2023)
>> Developers objected, arguing: Property already conveyed in 2011
>> "Double conveyance" is illegal
>> Authority granted deemed conveyance (Nov 2024), leading to court challenge
Developers transferred an incomplete title
The sale deed included:
>> Retention of FSI (development rights)
>> Future redevelopment rights
Argued:
>> Full ownership was never passed
>> Deemed conveyance necessary for clear title
>> Ownership must ultimately vest with flat purchasers
>> A promoter cannot retain residual development rights indefinitely
>> Statutory laws override contractual clauses
>> Partial conveyance defeats the purpose of housing laws
Strengthens homebuyers' ownership rights
Limits developers from:
>> Retaining control post-sale
>> Using contractual clauses to bypass law
Reinforces:
>> Full and clear conveyance is mandatory
>> Property cannot be conveyed twice
>> Title already transferred to the condominium in 2011
>> The registrar exceeded jurisdiction
>> Only civil courts can decide the validity of an earlier conveyance
>> Maharashtra Apartment Ownership Act, 1970
>> Maharashtra Ownership Flats Act, 1963 (MOFA)
Court clarified
>> Property remains with apartment owners even after legal structure changes
>> Promoter must transfer the complete title, not selective rights
Developers:
>> Retained FSI and redevelopment rights
>> Failed to disclose the full project scope initially
Such clauses:
>> Violate statutory intent
>> Undermine buyers' ownership
>> Writ petition dismissed
>> Deemed conveyance upheld
>> No interim relief granted
>> No order as to costs
Advocate Shreeprasad Parab, expert director at the Maharashtra State Housing Federation, represented the society
"The true spirit of cooperative housing is rooted in the constitutional vision under Article 43B. When promoters retain control after selling flats, it undermines statutory rights under MOFA and the principle that citizens must have complete ownership and dignity in their homes. This judgment reaffirms that statutory law will always prevail over developer-driven contracts."
