Baug flats won’t be a burden on Parsis

The Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP) and the Alert Zoroastrian Association (AZA) on Friday resolved the flat allotment issue for poor Parsis at Panthaky Baug, Andheri (East).
The AZA had challenged the BPP notification, demanding Rs5 lakh as deposit money before allotting flats in Baug on sale.

The applicants, members of the Parsi community, informed the Bombay high court about resolving the dispute out of court.

BPP chairperson Dinshaw Mehta said: “As per the new agreement, the Punchayet will raise Rs5 lakh for each flat, of which 80% (Rs4 lakh) will be given by the Zoroastrian Bank at 8% interest, whereas applicants will have to pay Rs1 lakh. This money (Rs5 lakh) will be deposited as fixed deposit with a nationalised bank at 4% interest.”

The interest from the total amount will be given to the applicant who will pay the remaining bank interest.

AZA member Zarir Jehangirji said the step was taken to ensure the poor Parsis do not lose out on the interest on the deposited amount in case the flat is not allotted to them.
Punchayet has now set the new dates for the sale of application form as December 31 and submission date as January 15.

Panthaky Baug has two buildings with 108 flats, of which 60 flats are to be sold.
The Punchayet is selling these flats to cross-subsidise the construction cost of more flats for poor Parsis.

The selling of the flats was stopped in November 2008 by the joint charity commissioner after AZA complaints stating that the BPP concealed facts. A section of community said the flats were being sold to rich Parsis at a discounted rate, which should have been given to needy Parsis first. 

When BPP challenged this order in the high court, it set aside the charity commissioner’s order but allowed the sale of flats on the condition that the Punchayet would construct 300 flats in the next two years from the proceeds.