Children have fundamental right to play; residents association cannot prohibit it: Karnataka High Court

Children have a fundamental right to play games and apartment owners' association cannot restrict the same arbitrarily, the Karnataka High Court recently held [Sangeetha Agarwal v Esteem Gardenia Apartment Owners Association].

Justice Hanchate Sanjeevkumar made the observation while quashing a residents association's decision to prohibit children from using the playground in the apartment.

"Playing games by children is a fundamental right of children and prohibiting the children from playing takes away their overall health," the Court ruled in its judgment of June 16.

The Court stated that the residents' association's contention of the playground being suitable only for a few games without mentioning the permitted games was vague.

"The averment made in the written statement is vague in nature and without giving any clarification. On the guise, the defendant is not supposed to prohibit the children from playing games in the play area," the Court made it clear.

Therefore, the Court directed the association to schedule a general body meeting and determine in three months which games are permissible in the apartment playground.

The Court was hearing a plea filed by two residents of Esteem Gardenia Apartment situated at Sahakara Nagar in Bengaluru challenging such restrictions.

Besides the restriction on use of playground, the plea also raised another issue - blocking of stairway by placing flowerpots.

The petitioner had faced a fatal injury after having slipped in the stairway that had a slippery floor from the water overflow in the flower pots. Upon complaining to the association, it removed the flower pots but placed it back after a few weeks.

The two owners then instituted a suit in the trial court against the association's placement of flower pots in stairways and the arbitrary restriction on children playing football in the playground.

The association removed the flower pots when the suit was filed in the trial court.

The trial court agreed that the flower pots were placed in a common area but dismissed the suit on the grounds that no illegality of the placement of plants was proved.

The petitioners then appealed to the High Court.

The High Court noted that stairways were common areas and obstruction to it would infringe the right to free movement, a basic right of all the residents.

The Court set aside the trial court decision on the ground that it failed to consider the dispute in a practical manner and neglected the danger posed by the poor management of a common area.

"The trial court has not considered this aspect in a practical way. Therefore, the plaintiffs have proved the fact that keeping the pots and watering them causes the floor to become wet and slippery, which obstructs free movement of the owners of the flats in the apartment," the High Court said.

Hence, it ordered the association to remove all flower pots from stairways and corridors used by residents.

It further mandated that no material be kept in the common areas that was in use by residents and members of the apartment.

Advocate BS Jeevan Kumar represented the petitioners.

[Read Judgment]