Veerendra 17 January 2020

Commercial charges on a dental clinic

Dear All Eminent Lawyers,

I am a dentist practicing in a one room kitchen flat since the last twenty nine years. I have been practicing before the co-operative housing society of our building was formed. When I started practice, since I was a fresh graduate and I was not filing income tax returns the banks refused to give me a loan for the premises. So my father took the loan, but all the repayment was done by me.

The society where I practice is levying heavy commercial charges on me. When I questioned them, they said that since the premises is in your father’s name but you are practicing there that is why we are levying commercial charges on you.

So my first query to this forum is whether the society was justified in levying commercial charges on a OPD practice?

Many years back my father filled up the nomination form and made me the nominee of the premises, however the society refused to accept the nomination form. A few years back my father transferred the one room kitchen flat to me by a gift deed which was duly registered with registrar of sub assurances. However the society is not admitting me as a member of the society.

Now what are my legal options?

Hope to see a lot of responses & many thanks in advance for the same.

Regards,

Yours Sincerely,

Dr. Veerendra Darakh

Reply Follow

5 Replies

SHIRISH PAWAR, 7738990900 (Advocate) 17 January 2020

Dear sir,

For commercial charges you have to check the resolution of society and if you are not satisfy with the resolution you can challenge it before society registrar. If society is not transferring the membership in your name in that case you have to send legal notice to society and later on approach society registrar.

Regards,

1 Like

Veerendra 18 January 2020

Thank you Advocate Pawar for the reply.

I have read in various articles that there are Supreme Court Judgments which clearly state that running a clinic is not a commercial activity. Please let me know if this is true. Hence I think no commercial charges are applicable to the practice of dentistry. I would like to see more responses from other lawyers on the forum.

The logic of the society is that I was practicing in a premises owned by my father and hence commercial charges are applicable.seems to be hollow and devoid of any logic.

Hope to see more comments from other learned lawyers on the forum.

Thanking you,

Yours Sincerely

Dr.Veerendra Darakh

P. Venu (Advocate) 19 January 2020

From the facts stated, the society is intruding into denying you, the fundamental right as to practicing your profession. It is well settled that no authority can interfere with the ordinary rights of a person unless authorised law. To my knowledge, there is no law which authorises the society to levy commercial charges.

Even the logic of the premises being owned by your makes no senses in the light of the gift deed executed.

As already suggested, you may serve a legal Notice on the Society management seeking remedy as well the damages.

1 Like

Veerendra 19 January 2020

Thank you Advocate Venu for the reply. This forum is a solace to me and I am sure for many other lay persons as well.

How and where should I claim damages.

T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate (Advocate) 27 January 2020

You cannot run a dental clinic from a rented residential premise. The society will not allow it. Also the owner will be charged commercial property, water and electricity charges. You can run a dental clinic from a self owned residential premise preferably on the ground floor or first floor.

1) doctors , lawyers , CA can use 30%of residential premises for consultations . that would not be regarded as using property for commercial purposes .

2) if more than 30%of flat is used for commercial purposes then they would have to pay commercial water charges , property tax for commercial purposes.

allahabad HC has held All the petitioners are qualified and registered medical practitioners. They have a right to run their private medical clinics for giving professional advice to the patients. A doctor's clinic run in a portion of the residential house, which may either be small and sufficiently big but which may not occupy the entire area with a waiting hall, a dispensary or even a small diagnostic facility may not convert the user of a premise from a residential user to commercial user. A non-nuisance professional activity running by doctors, lawyers, consultant, architect, chartered accountant, property consultants, government guides may also fall in the same category. The trouble starts when the doctor or any other consultants uses a substantial part of the building, for the activity including the incidental activities such as x-ray, ultrasonography, pathology, operation theatre and wards in which patients are admitted. These activities together with the consultancy, overreaches the limit of the user for professional use.

The rights given to carry on profession, including medical profession under Article 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution of India, are subject to reasonable restrictions in public interest. Such restrictions can be placed by the law made by the State under Article 19 (6) or may be imposed under an agreement to which the person may subscribe, in the interest of other residents.

1 Like