Chavan may not bite the bullet for ordinance to save Campa Cola

In a last ditch effort, residents of the Campa Cola society in Mumbai’s Worli area are praying for an ordinance to be passed by the state government, saving them from eviction, as technically an ordinance can be issued even just hours before an actual demolition. In October the Supreme Court granted a four week stay as breathing time to the residents of Campa Cola Society to vacate their illegal flats. The apex court said residents can stay till 11 November only. After meeting several legal experts and politicians, the only legal recourse for the residents has been to plead with state chief minister Prithviraj Chavan to pass an ordinance and regularise the colony, not unlike the government’s action in the past in Ulhasnagar. Residents have also cited  the example of a Karnataka government ordinance that saved the occupants of three illegal floors in a Bangalore building in 1996. [caption id=“attachment_1218711” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  In a last ditch effort, residents of the Campa Cola society are praying that an ordinance from the state can save them from eviction as technically ’ an ordinance can be issued just hours before an actual demolition.[/caption] While the Bangalore building had 8 floors, it was legally allowed to construct only five. However, as this Times of India report points out in 1980, the civic authorities had allowed the developer to build eight floors, while in the Worli case, in 1982, the builders were permitted to construct up to five floors, yet they built several illegal floors on each building, including two towers, without any BMC nod. Residents also  cited examples of  the decrees by Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand governments to save families who have been exploited by unscrupulous elements. Recalling that the State government  recently decided to opt for cluster development to regularize over a lakh of so-called unauthorized buildings in Thane district, residents are hopeful that  the CM will definitely see a valid point in their plea. But according to Congress MLA Amin Patel, an ordinance by chief minister Prithiviraj Chavan could be a challenging proposition legally, because passing an order for one particular society could set a dangerous precedent. The ordinance could define the future of other unauthorised buildings too. “Regularisation of Campa Cola  requires merits of it own. It cannot be done just based on single ordinance without affecting other illegal structures in the city,” Patel told Firstpost. Dilp Shah, senior counsel and analyst for redevelopment of housing societies agrees with Patel as an ordinance cannot be passed for one society alone, it binds all structures and is regarded as the rule of the land. " In case of Campa Cola, it is a clear violation of FSI norms. So if Chavan were to intervene with an ordinance it would mean that all buildings that have violated similar FSI norms will get a free pass for regularisation," Shah told Firspost. Shah believes that an ordinance will only make matters worse and the residents instead should be compensated by the builder as per the current market rate so that they can seek alternative accommodation. It should also be noted that Chavan has in the past stated that he will stick to the ‘rule book’ and not give in to political pressure. The only other option left for Chavan is to use his discretionary powers and urge the BMC to approach the Supreme Court and seek a stay on its order. “The ball is now in the BMC’s court,” said Patel. However, a u-turn from the BMC is not in sight as of now as the civic body has decided to send a notice to Campa Cola residents under BMC Act 488, which allows the civic officials to visit any building and inspect. As per the Supreme Court judgement, only five floors of the buildings are legal. The rest of 35 floors are unauthorised. It is claimed that the SC order will have a huge impact on the city’s illegal buildings and would prove as deterrent for unscrupulous  builders.