Back
"Zara Hatke, Zara Bachke": Bombay HC Sounds Alarm on Slum Act Failures, Orders Expert Audit for Slum-Free Mumbai Dream
Mumbai,
– In a scathing 264-page verdict invoking the iconic
CID
song lyric
"Aye dil, hai mushkil jeena yahan, zara hatke, zara bachke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan,"
the
lambasted the
, as a half-century-old "ad-hoc" law that has utterly failed to deliver a "slum-free Mumbai."
A division bench of Justices G.S. Kulkarni ( ) and Advait M. Sethna, in , directed the state government to form an expert committee within four weeks to conduct a comprehensive performance audit of the Act. The panel, comprising urban planners, architects, and senior officials, must submit its report within 10 months to overhaul the legislation's implementation.
From Dream to 2026 Nightmare: Slums Still Dominate Mumbai
The bench, constituted pursuant to a order in Yash Developers v. Harihar Krupa Co-Op Housing Society ( ), dissected 55 years of slum policy failures. Despite amendments and the 's efforts, Mumbai's slums sprawl across 875.97 acres, housing ~12 million people—over 40% of the population.
Key indictment:
"The official machinery...has failed to eradicate the slums to fulfill the dream of the year
."
The court highlighted "vertical slums" from high-density rehab buildings lacking light, ventilation, and amenities, turning redevelopments into "concrete jungles."
Citing aerial views near Mumbai Airport, it lamented:
"Any international traveler arriving...would see acres of land occupied by slums,"
branding Mumbai a "city of slums."
"Grossest Fraud on Constitution": Public Land Encroachments, Endless Cut-Off Dates
The HC reserved its harshest words for public land grabs:
"Encroachments on government lands...amounts to the
."
Slums on scarce public plots (state,
,
) are legitimized via free/subsidized tenements, siphoning land for private profit under redevelopment guises.
No deterrence against encroachments, the bench fumed, rewards illegality:
"Policies effectively reward illegal encroachment by guaranteeing free in-situ tenements."
It ordered an absolute
freeze on cut-off dates
—no more extensions via circulars. Post-freeze encroachers get no rehab; non-protected dwellers must seek private/open-market housing.
Developer-Centric Mess: Societies as "Proxy," Vertical Slums, Rent Delays
Redevelopment is "developer-centric," not society-led, the court noted. Slum societies, often developer-puppets, appoint unvetted "by-night developers," spawning disputes over transit rent (arrears >₹1,000 crore), stalled projects (500+ pending), and quality.
Vertical rehabs cram 600+ tenements/hectare (vs.
's 500 max), birthing "vertical slums" sans open spaces, fire safety:
"No warrant for straining infrastructure by vertical redevelopment."
/ pendency plagues remedies; bench mandated judicial members (retired HC judge chairs ), daily sittings.
Directives for Reform: Expert Panel, Pool Housing, No Freebies
Key orders: - Expert Committee : Urban planners ( / reps), architects, Urban Dev't PS—audit Act, report in 10 months. - Density Cap : Max 600 tenements/ha; light/ventilation norms. - Pool Housing : End "free housing"; subsidies/loans, leave-licence for poor; CLR for public lands. - Overhaul : Retired HC judge chair, daily benches. - Annexure-II Freeze : Biometrics/GIS for eligibility; no post-survey additions.
"Political Will Needed": Echoes SC, HC Precedents
Drawing from Galaxy Enterprises ( ), Jilani Building ( ), and SC's Yash Developers ( )—flagging 1,612 pending cases—the bench urged: "Robust mechanism...scientific approach" via specialized body.
Implications: Potential Slum Act rewrite; end to "unconstitutional" freebies on public land; transit rent reforms (base rates, escrow). Developers face stricter vetting; societies sidelined for SRA-led selection.
As Mumbai's skyline pierces clouds amid sprawling slums, the HC's clarion call:
"Sail with the tide of time"
—or risk "irreparable damage haunting generations."
