Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has cleared the way for the Worli-Sewri Elevated Corridor project, directing three slum dwellers to vacate their structures, which were blocking the construction site.
A bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Arif Doctor was hearing a petition by the Mahakali Nagar Rahivasi SRA Sahakari Gruhnirman Sanastha, representing slum dwellers who were seeking protection from eviction until the rehabilitation project was completed.
Highlighting Long-Standing Delays
The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) had approved the slum rehabilitation plan back in 2004, but the project has been stalled for over a decade, leaving many families without permanent homes. The petitioners claimed that the delay in the rehabilitation had caused them significant hardship.
“It is unacceptable that a developer has not completed the project in over 20 years,” the bench said, highlighting the delay in the project and the failure to pay rent to slum dwellers for up to 12 years.
The dispute focused on three slum dwellers—Sharda Suhas Page, Hemchand Gangaram Gupta, and Kalpana Bhagwan Mhatre—whose homes were obstructing the construction of the elevated corridor. While four other dwellers had accepted compensation and vacated, these three had refused to leave, despite notices being issued in 2022.
Compensation and Vacate Timeline
However, the SRA offered to pay them Rs 25,000 per month as advance rent for one year if they agreed to vacate. The three slum dwellers accepted the offer, agreeing to leave their homes within 10 days of receiving the payment.
The Court has ordered the SRA to deposit the advance rent into their bank accounts by August 13, 2025, and gave the three dwellers until August 22, 2025, to vacate. If they do not comply, authorities are allowed to take further action, including demolition.
Developer and Authority Accountability
The Court also instructed the SRA to resolve the petitioner’s application under the Slums Act within 15 days. The ruling emphasised the urgent need for the rehabilitation project to be completed and the rights of the slum dwellers to be properly addressed.
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“If what has been canvassed by the slum dwellers is correct that the slum dwellers are not paid rent for 12 years, then certainly this is a serious ground that the SRA needs to take over the project itself as permissible under Section 13 and complete the project in a manner known to law, unless there are serious impediments with which the developer or even the slum rehabilitation authorities are incapable of resolving insofar their obligations are concerned,” the bench noted while disposing the petition.
