Tenants up in arms against ‘unjust’ MbPT

Tenants up in arms against ‘unjust’ MbPT

The Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) has come under fire for its alleged unjust treatment of its lessees and tenants who occupy a major part of its 720 hectares of land from Sassoon Dock to Sewri-Wadala. The members, who fear losing their homes, have alleged that the trust failed to implement the Supreme Court’s ruling to grant them a fresh or renewed lease. Several lessees have now approached the Bombay high court and the matter is expected to come up for hearing soon. In addition, the tenants plan on approaching the government for help. There are over 5,000 structures and over 2,500 tenants on fifteen different residential and commercial leases. Homi Chibber, the president of the BPT Residential Tenants Association said that the MbPT had failed to implement the SC judgement of 2004 in the case of Jamshed Wadia Vs Board of Trustees of the Port of Bombay and Anr., and has neither renewed nor granted fresh leases. Instead, the Trust passed a resolution seeking to levy market rates of rent and heavy penalties for breaches and non-submission of actual occupant lists. He pointed out that the matter has been in litigation since 1980. After over 22 years of litigation, in 2004 the SC upheld certain ‘Compromise Proposals’ that were mooted by the Trust itself, and reduced the rents as well as the interest burden. Two years later, the MbPT passed a resolution contrary to the SC order inflicting heavy penalties on lessees. . Advocate Viren Asar, counsel for the tenants and lessees said that the MbPT may be in contempt of the SC orders. He went on to reveal that the Trust has been collecting rent, and interest without providing the corresponding benefits of the Compromise Proposals.