New Delhi: Mumbai's Campa Cola society residents, who have been protesting against their eviction and the proposed demolition of 90 illegal flats, came for severe criticism from the Supreme Court on Monday.
Slamming the Campa Cola society residents, the Supreme Court said that they cannot sit on protest and agitate. The apex court also came down heavily on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) saying the court never asked the officials to carry out evictions forcibly.
The court asked the BMC if the matter can be settled out of court and also asked the residents that if they want a clarification whether the court had ordered an eviction or not, they can file an application.
After a three-day standoff, the BMC officials had on June 23 disconnected power and gas supply at some of the illegal flats in the Campa Cola society in Mumbai.
The Deputy Municipal Commissioner had said that 55 electronic meters in the compound were disconnected. Water connection in six flats was also disconnected, while gas connection had been disconnected in 14 flats.
The Supreme Court had on June 3 dismissed the plea of the residents of the illegal flats against an earlier order asking them to vacate their apartments by May 31.
Following the apex court order, the BMC had issued notices to the owners of the illegal units to hand over the keys to their flats so that demolition could be carried out. However, none of the owners has done so.
The deadline for vacating the flats expired on June 20 and, as part of their plan to force the occupants to hand over the apartments, civic authorities decided to cut off essential services like water and power supply to them.
In their last-ditch effort to save their flats, the residents had even petitioned to President Pranab Mukherjee, requesting him to stay the demolition of the illegal flats on "humanitarian grounds."
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