The court has directed the civic body to refrain from taking any coercive action for one week
The Bombay High Court on Thursday directed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which was carrying out demolitions in the Garib Nagar slums in Bandra East, to discontinue the demolition drive after a plea filed by a resident.
This order comes in light of a major fire that erupted recently during a court-ordered demolition drive by the BMC to clear shanties falling in the buffer zone of the Tansa pipeline.
A division bench of Justice Vasanti Naik and Justice Riyaz Chagla gave the direction while hearing a plea filed by a resident Nilofer Qureshi, who sought permission for the reconstruction of her shanty, claiming it was built prior to 1995. The plea also claimed that the corporation had carried out the demolition action without notice.
However, senior advocate Anil Sakhare and advocate Joel Carlos opposed the plea on grounds that the demolition is in pursuance of the High Court order passed a few years back, ordering the removal of slums along the pipelines in phases. Accordingly, the slum tenements totalling around 325 were removed in phase II and phase III.
The court accepted the statement, and refusing to grant interim relief for the redevelopment of demolished shanties, posted the matter for further hearing next week.
Last week, train services were affected on the Harbour line between Bandra and Andheri stations as slum dwellers spilled onto the tracks after a massive fire broke out in Garib Nagar slums in Bandra East.
The incident, which took place during a demolition drive ordered by the HC, saw slum dwellers getting their furniture, TV sets, refrigerators, onto the railway tracks.
THE PLEA
- The petitioner, Nilofer Qureshi, a resident of Garib Nagar has sought permission for reconstruction of her shanty, claiming it was built in 1995.
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 "Demolition Drive")
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