Bombay HC Directs Maharashtra Govt To Hear Slum Dwellers Facing Eviction From Sanjay Gandhi National Park

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed the Maharashtra government to grant a hearing to certain slum dwellers residing inside Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) who have been served eviction notices.

A bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice M.S. Karnik was informed by the State that due process had been followed before issuing the notices and that eligible dwellers would be accommodated.

The court was hearing a petition filed by a group of slum dwellers who contended they were eligible for rehabilitation and had documents to prove it.

In January, the HC had pulled up the State for delaying action against illegal encroachments within SGNP. It had directed a survey to identify eligible encroachers and immediate removal of those not covered by the 2011 cut-off date for rehabilitation.

Following this, the government issued eviction notices and launched a removal drive.

Advocate Ashok Saraogi, representing the petitioners, argued that the dwellers had been residing in SGNP since before the cut-off date but were served eviction notices without a hearing.

State Advocate General Birendra Saraf said a survey had been conducted and assured the court that eligible dwellers would be rehabilitated.

“They (dwellers) want one more chance. Hear them. We will ask them to appear on a particular date when they will show their documents,” the bench told Saraf, directing the State to decide their eligibility as per law.

The HC asked the petitioners to appear before the appropriate authority on May 14 with relevant documents, and said it would pass a reasoned order thereafter.

Despite a 2003 judgment mandating relocation of slum dwellers whose names were on electoral rolls as of 1995, the State had unilaterally extended the cut-off to 2011.

In October 2024, the State had told the court it would rehabilitate eligible slum dwellers on 90 acres of land carved out of 190 acres at Marol-Maroshi in the western suburbs. The move was opposed by the Conservation Action Trust, NGO Vanashakti, and activist Zoru Bathena, who pointed out that the plot falls within Aarey Colony, a Notified Forest and eco-sensitive zone where no development is permitted. The issue remains pending.