Authorities should stop encouraging private mafia for illegal constructions as poor people suffer: Bombay High Court

“The STP and dumping ground are essential and such land cannot be usurped by any party to the detriment of the civic interest of all others in the locality,” the bench noted.

However, considering the ongoing monsoon period, the bench said that the demolition orders should not be executed until September 30, provided that the concerned occupants give an undertaking of vacating the premises by the said date.

A division bench of Justices Mahesh S Sonak and Kamal R Khata was hearing intervention application by 15 persons residing at Vasant Nagari in Vijayalaxmi Nagar in Nalasopara aggrieved by the notices by the VVCMC to vacate the premises.

The civic body, through advocate Swati Sagvekar, informed the bench that some of the buildings are already demolished and action will be taken to demolish all other illegal constructions. Therefore, the bench noted that the main relief sought against unauthorised constructions in the petition is worked out.

Sagvekar submitted that constructions had come up when the property was under City Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) and later the demolition notices could not be implemented due to pending court proceedings and interim reliefs availed by the occupants in the same. She added that as soon as those interim reliefs were vacated by the courts, the civic body initiated action.

The court noted that stay on demolition sought by intervenors cannot be granted through such an application and their lawyer could not show that the buildings they occupied had requisite permissions given by the authorities.

It stated that the intervenors may have executed registered agreements with the developer but the same was “not a good ground to protect constructions which are wholly unauthorised and put up at site where they should not have come up”. The bench said that intervenors are at liberty to sue the developer or any other person for recovering other damages in separate proceedings.

The bench added that full opportunity was given to the occupants and it was “clear that constructions were wholly unauthorised”. It dismissed the intervention application and also disposed of the writ petition.

The court also asked the VVCMC to file a compliance report about the demolition action by October 14. “We restrain occupants from creating third party rights until premises are vacated by them by September 30,” the bench noted.

Advocate Uday Warunjikar for the petitioner submitted that such illegal constructions are taking place across limits of every municipal corporation and the same cannot happen without the convenience of civic body officers.

After VVCMC’s lawyer said that CIDCO officers should have safeguarded the land and they were aware of such illegal constructions, Justice Khata orally remarked, “That is the last thing that VVCMC should say. You are instrumentalities of the state. If you encourage things, whether a private party or someone else, you are encouraging private mafia. It is for you all to stop it. Poor people are getting completely ruined in this.”