Bengaluru: In a significant ruling affecting apartment complexes across the country, the Karnataka High Court has held that children have a fundamental right to play and that apartment owners’ associations cannot impose arbitrary restrictions on recreational activities or compromise the safety of common areas.
The judgment, delivered by Justice Hanchate Sanjeevkumar, overturned a 2021 trial court order and directed an apartment association in Bengaluru to remove flower pots obstructing stairways while reconsidering its ban on children playing football and other physical games.
Case arose from a stairway accident
The case was filed by Sangeetha Agrawal and Hemant Agrawal, residents of Esteem Gardenia Apartments in Sahakara Nagar.
The couple alleged that the apartment association had placed numerous flower pots along the stairways, narrowing the passage and making the floor slippery whenever the plants were watered.
On August 29, 2012, Sangeetha Agrawal reportedly slipped on the wet stairs and suffered a serious fracture that required multiple surgeries and the insertion of implants.
Despite repeated complaints and a legal notice, the association allegedly failed to remove the flower pots permanently, prompting the couple to approach the court seeking damages and a mandatory injunction.
Safety cannot be compromised
Rejecting the association’s argument that the flower pots had been placed following a majority decision to improve the building’s aesthetics, the High Court observed that common areas must remain safe and accessible to all residents.
The court held that watering plants on stairways could make the surface slippery, thereby affecting residents’ right to free movement, and ordered the association to remove all flower pots from stairways, corridors and other common areas.
Children have a right to play
The High Court also examined the apartment association’s decision to prohibit children from playing football and other physical games in the complex’s playground.
The association had justified the restriction by stating that only games “suitable for the play area” were permitted. However, the court noted that it had failed to clearly define which games were allowed and termed the restriction arbitrary.
In a strong observation, the court stated, “Playing games is a fundamental right of children and prohibiting the children from playing takes away their overall health.”
The court directed the association to convene a General Body Meeting within three months to reconsider the restrictions and frame clear, reasonable rules regarding the use of the playground.
The ruling is expected to influence apartment associations across India by reinforcing the importance of child-friendly communities and ensuring that common spaces remain safe, accessible and inclusive for all residents.