Broker asking me to pay for AC repair despite contract saying owner covers maintenance — threatening eviction

[User_4b1431a7]

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User_4b1431a7
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May 2, 2026 at 1:47 pm

I’m a student who recently moved into a 3BHK flat in Pune (living alone for now, still looking for a roommate). This is my first time renting, so I might’ve made some mistakes.
Here’s the situation:
Rent: ₹50,000/month
Brokerage: ₹75,000 (paid upfront with the understanding that rent won’t increase)
Agreement clearly states that **maintenance is the owner’s responsibility**

About 15 days after I moved in, the AC stopped working.
I wasn’t at the flat at the time, and the broker handled the repair (I now realize I should’ve been involved, but I didn’t know better). The AC got fixed, and now the broker is telling me the bill is ₹8,000 and **I have to pay it**.

I refused, since my agreement clearly states maintenance is the owner’s responsibility.
Now the situation has escalated:
Broker says the owner wants me to either:
Pay the full ₹8,000, or
Do a 50-50 split (₹4,000 each), or
**Vacate the flat**

I spoke to the owner once — he didn’t even know the bill amount and just seemed surprised
Since then, the owner (who lives in the U.S.) is not responding to my calls
The broker is constantly calling and pressuring me
This feels really unfair and honestly a bit like harassment.

**My questions:**
Can they legally force me to vacate over this?
Am I actually liable to pay anything here?
How should I handle the broker going forward?
Should I escalate this legally or file a complaint somewhere?
Any advice would really help — I’m new to renting and feeling quite overwhelmed.

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