A circular issued by the Slum Redevelopment Authority (SRA) on June 6, 2015, on transit rent increases is still gathering dust. The circular mandates a regular increase in transit rent to be paid by the developer to the slum dwellers who have vacated their premises for the redevelopment project.
The circular was released, acknowledging that many redevelopment projects are delayed, requiring the inhabitants to live in rented apartments for many years.
This was brought to the attention of the Bombay High Court, which directed the slum authority to rule on the representation of Wadala slum inhabitants who sought enforcement of the circular.
A division bench of justices Gautam Patel and Kamal Khata is hearing the case.
On February 7, the court said, “We dispose of the petition by directing the 3rd respondent, the joint registrar cooperative department SRA, to decide the representation of the petitioners, which is dated December 1, 2023, on a priority basis and preferably within six weeks from today.”
The court was hearing a petition filed by 78 eligible slum residents from the Wadala Village Welfare CHSL requesting that the SRA enforce its circular ordering a 5% increase in transit rent. CHSL was created to represent the slum dwellers by combining numerous tiny slum societies in Wadala that were scheduled for rehabilitation. It has more than 2,300 slum inhabitants and municipal tenants.
Their lawyers, senior advocate Ranjeet Thorat and advocate Yashodeep Deshmukh, claimed that several people turned over "vacant and peaceful possession" of their properties to developer M/s Merit Magnum Constructions (previously known as Vimal Builders) following the projected reconstruction.
In 2004, a developer was appointed to redevelop the slum, and it was decided that the developer would pay INR 15,000 as rent. However, over all these years, several legal disputes led to pausing redevelopment. Subsequently, they signed an agreement with Merit Magnum Constructions. On July 31, 2023, the developer issued a letter and a reminder letter on September 6, asking residents to vacate the premises for a rent of INR 15,000 per month.
Deshmukh said the petitioners contacted the joint registrar co-operative department on December 1 and submitted a reminder letter. However, since they had not received a response, they approached the HC.
Meanwhile, the developer offered to pay INR 19,000 plus a one-time relocation cost of INR 20,000. However, given the market rate of INR 23,000–25,000 per month, the petitioners have requested a higher rent.
The petition questioned whether it is "fair, proper, legal, and reasonable" on the part of the developer to refuse to pay rent at the prevailing market rate in the area, as well as to provide annual rent enhancements or hikes. It also questioned the SRA officials' inaction in implementing their own circular.
The petitioner’s plea stated that there is a concerning tendency for an increase in room rent costs in the bustling metropolis of Mumbai, especially in locations like Wadala, which is near South Mumbai and key commercial centers, as well as having numerous large-ticket projects coming up or already in place, which requires judicial notice.
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