No Check on RWAs Enforcing Arbitrary Rules

The incident, where a family was allegedly assaulted by a mob – including members of Resident Welfare Association – has provoked an outcry over the safety of the residents living in the society. The victims, which included three women and a man, were dragged and attacked by a rabble of angry men and women, who justified their action by targeting the regional identity of the victims.

However, the residents who spoke to Newsclick have maintained they never had any issues with the family.

Background

On May 10, a family from Kashmir that has been living in New Delhi for over a decade, was attacked by an irate mob carrying hockey and bamboo sticks in the Sunlight colony, Maharani Bagh, Delhi.

Later, a video of the incident had gone viral on social media, in which, a mob of over dozen people was seen beating and forcefully dragging the three women. As per the victim, she was groped and molested.

Most of the people involved in the attack were identified as the residents of the Sunlight colony and reportedly, the members of Flat Occupant Association. “As the mob was approaching, I could see S.N. Pandey (president of the association) and Nalin Tripathi (another member of the association) amongst them,” one of the victims told Newsclick.

A number of conflicting reports have emerged after the incident. While it has been maintained by the Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik that the attack was not related to the victim's Kashmiri origin, a letter to the PMO by the Flat Occupants Association suggests otherwise. In the letter to the Prime Minister dated April 2, the victim family has been accused of "harbouring terrorists". The letter reads: "We have serious apprehensions that these persons are involved in certain illegal activities viz harbouring of terrorists."

It was also written that this Kashmiri family has been trained to destroy the families of the residents. "These persons claim that they are Muslims and have been trained to destroy the families of 'Kafirs' and make their lives a hell," the letter read.

As per the Newsclick investigation, it has been found that the victim family, which has been living in this society for past 17 years, had had few altercations with the office bearers of RWA previously over various issues related to illegal land encroachments. As per the victim, their family, along with a few neighbours, had reported the issue of illegal land encroachments and cutting down of trees to NDMC and since then, they have come under the scanner of the Flat Occupant Association.

"There are few handful of people who are creating the issue. They are the ones who are targeting our identity. In the letter, they have also stated that if these Kashmiri guys are not thrown out, we will take law in our hands. And these were those people who were a part of the mob," one of the victims told Newsclick.

 Response from Residents

A local resident, S.K Shubhani said, "The Kashmiri family used to gather stray dogs and feed them. We elderly people were afraid to go outside. There have been few incidents when the dog has bitten us. Besides that, the family has been really cordial. Feeding the dogs is the only issue."

Another resident Sunil Raina said, "As a resident of the society, I condemn such an incident. We are concerned about the safety of our women in the colony. It is unacceptable that women were attacked for feeding dogs. More than that, the participation of RWA members among the mob is problematic and outrageous. The association is here to protect us and not to attack us."

Legal Aspects

The incident has raised concerns over the functioning of the Residential Welfare Associations.

As per one of the residents, who wanted to stay anonymous, "This year there were no elections in the society. The association was formed in January, and was formed by a few people among themselves. There is no accountability. As a female, I have been harassed a few times for feeding dogs. My identity has been used to harass me. They illegally encroach lands, cut down trees and we can't even question them. This is outrageous."

Resident Welfare Associations are registered with Registrar of Societies under the Delhi government. The Registrar is covered under the RTI Act. Therefore, if residents want any information about the working of RWA, they have to go through the Registrar of Societies.

"Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) are typically registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. They are governed by constitutional documents such as a Memorandum of Association which contains their objectives and functions. They are voluntary associations made by residents and they don’t have any statutory powers. The arbitrary power to decide on rules of how others should live and the collection and management of money makes RWAs one of the most conflict-ridden entity,” said a lawyer on the condition of anonymity.

However, RWAs have been arbitrary in their rules ranging from issues related to pets to barring a person of particular origin, faith or ethnicity from the society. The harassment continues with refusing certain communities, nationalities as tenants, moral policing and objection to the entry of the visitors of opposite gender. This violates the fundamental rights of citizens. Interestingly, there is no check against any kind of harassment.

The only recourse for residents who wish to protest against the RWA’s rules, is to approach the Registrar of Societies, which has the right to cancel the registration of the association.