Bengaluru: A Bangalore Apartments Federation (BAF) delegation met governor Thaawar Chand Gehlot Friday and submitted a representation, highlighting the importance of the proposed new apartment law in securing apartment ownership, protecting common areas and ensuring accountable community governance.Karnataka Apartment Ownership and Management Bill (KAOMA), 2026, passed by the legislature, is awaiting assent from governor.Several residents are eager to see the ownership and management rules take effect, which will define the rights and duties of apartment owners.“Apartment ownership should mean more than owning four walls; it should include meaningful rights over the common property shared by all owners,” says Satish Mallya, president of BAF.Meanwhile, a few home buyer associations said Rera already requires the promoter to execute registered conveyance and transfer undivided proportionate title in common areas to the association of allottees or competent authority, as applicable.However, the challenge is timely compliance and enforcement, noted Mallya.Vikram Rai, former president of BAF, said that for older apartments like Brigade Millennium, where he lives, which have been registered under Karnataka Societies Registration Act (KSRA), the biggest advantage that KAOMA brings is the automatic recognition as an apartment association, while many courts have effectively rejected the legitimacy of KSRA for apartments.“Also, the fact that KAOMA amply clarifies that the land and common areas of an apartment complex collectively belong to all owners in proportion to their undivided rights and gives the association the legitimate right to manage, maintain and administer the property, including statutory rights for assessment and recovery of maintenance charges, is very significant,” he added.However, Dhananjaya Padmanabhachar, convener of Karnataka Home Buyers Forum (KHBF), said the KAOMA bill omits essential provisions for transferring common areas to registered associations. This omission contradicts the requirements set forth in Rera, he said.
