Bengaluru Tenant Forced to Apologize for Inviting Female Guests to Housewarming Party
Finding a rental home in India, especially in cities like Bengaluru, is becoming increasingly difficult for young professionals. Tenants often face a host of arbitrary and discriminatory conditions imposed by landlords, from curfews and visitor restrictions to bans on non-vegetarian food. Single tenants and unmarried couples bear the brunt of these prejudices, with landlords frequently questioning their lifestyle choices.
Security deposit deductions are another sore point. One tenant recently took to Reddit after his landlord slashed over 60% of his ₹1 lakh deposit, citing charges for repainting, a brokerage plan fee, and even compensation for a rusty kitchen rack.
The latest case involves a tenant living in a Koramangala apartment complex who has alleged on Reddit that his landlord asked him to sign an ‘unconditional apology’ that included a blanket ban on allowing women into his rented flat.
The tenant, who shares a ₹72,000-per-month 3BHK flat in Koramangala with three others, was served an eviction notice by the owner after repeated altercations with the apartment association over what he described as ‘unreasonable and intimidating’ building rules.
According to the Reddit post, the incident took place within days of the tenant moving in, when he hosted a small housewarming gathering that included 12 friends, 10 men, and two women. A man claiming to be the building president allegedly blocked their entry at the gate due to the presence of the female guests, citing a ‘no-women’ rule for bachelors. ‘There was no shouting from my side,’ the Redditor wrote. ‘He physically stood at the gate. I was shocked.’
Following the incident, the flat owner handed the tenant a written apology to sign, containing a blanket admission of guilt and regret for ‘causing disturbances’ and a commitment to follow all future rules set by the apartment owners, including a clause stating that no women would be allowed inside the flat as it is a ‘family residential apartment,’ the Reddit post said.
The letter also held the Redditor's two flatmates responsible, requiring them to sign the same apology and accept collective punishment, including eviction, if any of them break the rules again, it said.
Responding to the Reddit post, a user who identified as both a property owner in another city and a tenant in Bengaluru said, ‘As long as you haven’t received noise complaints, haven’t acted obscenely in view of neighbors, haven’t damaged the apartment while hosting guests, aren’t allowing extra people to stay long-term, and haven’t misused common areas, you’re not in the wrong.
‘Owners have no right to dictate who you can or cannot bring into the apartment, unless explicitly stated in the rental agreement. Standing up against draconian rules doesn’t make you a bad tenant. You’re a resident too, and you pay your dues,’ he said.
Legal experts say such clauses may not hold up in court. Advocate Chandrachud Bhattacharyya, who practices before the NCDRC and the Supreme Court, said, ‘A flat owner or housing society cannot enforce a blanket ban on visitors, especially based on gender, unless supported by a legally registered set of by-laws. Discriminatory rules like ‘no women in bachelor flats’ will not hold merit in court.’
They also said that asking tenants to sign apology letters under pressure, particularly those that curtail basic rights, may amount to coercion.
‘However, if tenants choose to approach the police, they may be able to file a criminal complaint for intimidation against members of the apartment association. If the association members threaten tenants, use coercive tactics, or attempt to enforce arbitrary rules through harassment, it could amount to criminal intimidation,’ he said.
