The High Court has ordered the PWD to ask parties to vacate barracks rented by them in LIC building by November 7.
The Bombay High Court has ordered the Public Works Department (PWD) to ask political parties to vacate barracks rented by them in LIC building and ENSA hutments at Azad Maidan by November 7 if they do not pay the dues that runs into lakhs of rupees.
Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh had granted a stay on the recovery of rent arrears for office spaces allotted to political parties in 2002. Justice FI Rebello and Justice Anup Mohta took a serious note and said that the Chief Minister was not authorised to pronounce such an order.
The petition was filed by Krantikari Jaihind Sena, a political outfit, which was rejected the allocation of premises on lease in the city by the PWD.
In an affidavit filed before the court on Tuesday, Anilkumar Gaikwad, executive engineer, Presidency division, PWD, said major political parties, including the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee, the BJP, the Shiv Sena, Janata Dal and Republican Party of India, owed the PWD amounts running into lakhs of rupees.
The parties did not pay their monthly dues even after several notices were issued to them and some had even been issued show cause notices under the Bombay Government Premises (Eviction) Act, 1955.
“Some parties have had their offices in those premises since 1970 and even after the rent was revised it has been as nominal as Rs 5/ sq foot per month and still they haven’t paid the rent for all these years,” said RN Kachwe, the petitioner’s advocate.
The CPM Mumbai Regional Congress Committee and the Republican Party of India then made a representation to the Chief Minister asking for a waiver of dues and revision of Rs 5 per sq. foot rent. The CM then granted a stay on the eviction and recovery of dues.
A political party then made a representation to PWD stating that if the Chief Minister’s stay was applicable for the three political parties, it had to applicable for them also. The PWD then stayed the recovery of rent from all political parties.
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