Pune: Appellate Court Lifts Ban On Kondhwa Housing Society’s Decision Allowing Aerobics Room Use For Ramzan Prayers
Pune: Appellate Court Lifts Ban On Kondhwa Housing Society’s Decision Allowing Aerobics Room Use For Ramzan Prayers
Pune, November 10, 2025: The Maharashtra State Cooperative Appellate Court has overturned a lower court’s order that had restrained a Kondhwa housing society from allowing residents to use its aerobics room for prayers during the holy month of Ramzan.
In its judgment dated October 29, appellate court member V. B. Kulkarni set aside the June 25 order of the Cooperative Court, Pune, which had issued an injunction against the Bramha Emerald County Cooperative Housing Society’s resolution passed in March 2023. The resolution permitted the use of the aerobics room from 3:30 pm to 7:30 pm daily throughout the month of Ramzan.
Kulkarni noted that in a cooperative housing society, members come from varied religious and cultural backgrounds. “When the majority of members take a decision, those who disagree must still follow it—provided it doesn’t inconvenience others or violate the society’s byelaws,” he observed.
The appellate court found that the trial court had misinterpreted the society’s bye-laws while granting the injunction. It clarified that the society’s decision did not amount to subletting, commercial use, or alteration of the facility’s purpose, but was instead a temporary and community-driven arrangement.
The case was originally filed by Mohammed Umar Memon, a society member, who argued that the resolution violated byelaws 168 and 169 and sought a permanent injunction against the use of common facilities for religious activities. The Cooperative Court had initially granted an interim stay, which the appellate court has now dismissed.
The appellate court further directed the lower court to decide the main dispute by June 2026, urging an expedited hearing.
The Bramha Emerald County Cooperative Housing Society, located in Kondhwa, has a total of 352 members.
