In a strong rebuke to what it called “a glaring case of misuse of the legal process to protect illegalities,” the Bombay High Court has directed occupants of the 17th to 34th floors of the 34-storey Wellingdon Heights building in Tardeo to vacate their flats within two weeks. The court refused to grant any stay on its order, noting that these upper floors have been illegally occupied since 2011 without an Occupation Certificate (OC) or Fire NOC.
“We cannot grant any relief to any litigant if such relief is in the teeth of the provisions of law, more particularly when it concerns occupation of premises that have no OC and endanger human safety,” a bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Arif Doctor said on July 15. The detailed order copy was made available late Saturday night.
The building, developed by M/s Satellite Holdings, has an OC only up to the 16th floor. The remaining 18 floors have been occupied for over a decade despite repeated notices from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the absence of clearance from the fire department.
The court was hearing a plea filed by Sunil B. Jhaveri (HUF), a member of the Society. Separate petitions have been filed by the society and some flat purchasers seeking protection and time to regularise the construction. They argued that efforts were being made to bring the flats in line with sanctioned plans.
Senior advocate Dinyar Madon, representing the society, urged the court to grant occupants a one-year window to continue residing in the flats, while they undertake steps to make necessary modifications / alterations as per the BMC notices.
The court, however, rejected the request. “There cannot be a plea more audacious than this,” the bench said, adding, “This would bring about a regime of total lawlessness… Such lawlessness in respect of the premises we are dealing with can never be permitted.”
The court noted that the illegalities were not committed by uninformed citizens but “persons who are not poor or illiterate, but who belong to the elite class of society,” and observed that these occupants had the means to obstruct enforcement through litigation.
Senior advocate SU Kamdar, representing the BMC, told the court that despite issuing at least eight notices since 2011, including demolition and restoration orders, the upper floors remain occupied. He pointed out that while a ‘Construction Fire NOC’ had been issued during construction, the final Fire NOC was never obtained. He warned that the entire building posed a significant risk.
The court recorded Kamdar’s statement that the building “ought to have been sealed”. “The occupation of the entire building as on date is extremely dangerous in the absence of any fire safety norms,” the court said.
On the remaining 1st to 16th floors, which do have part-OC, the court said it would hear further arguments on July 29 but flagged that those levels also lack a Fire NOC. Until then, the BMC has been directed to stay its hand with respect to demolition on these floors.
Slamming the attempt to seek relief on “humanitarian grounds,” the court concluded: “The purchasers of the flats are a selfish lot who, with open eyes, are acting contrary to building regulations. Such conduct, wholly contrary to law, cannot be countenanced.”
