The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has intensified its efforts to reclaim control over 1,336 residential and 50 commercial units in Kurla’s Premier Compound, directing the troubled real estate developer HDIL to vacate these properties. This action follows significant issues regarding illegal occupation and outstanding rent arrears.
The MMRDA has issued eviction notices to HDIL’s resolution professional, demanding the immediate return of these units, which were initially designated as transit accommodation for slum dwellers displaced by airport expansion. Additionally, MMRDA has called for the payment of over INR 35 crore in overdue rent and GST within the next month. The eviction process is scheduled to take place between October 7 and 10, with MMRDA requesting police protection to manage the removal of unauthorized occupants.
These buildings, allocated to HDIL nine years ago, were intended to house residents from Bharat Nagar and nearby slum areas as part of a slum rehabilitation scheme initiated in 2009. The dispute dates back to the agreement between Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) and MMRDA, which began in December 2006. HDIL received a letter of intent for the resettlement of airport slum dwellers in 2007. However, issues arose when the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) transferred control of the buildings to MMRDA in 2021, revealing that many flats were occupied illegally.
Atri-party agreements among SRA, HDIL, and MIAL had originally granted temporary leases to Project Affected Persons (PAPs) in buildings 5 and 6. HDIL, led by Sarang Wadhawan, has been embroiled in insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2019, complicating the situation further. According to legal representatives, HDIL had defaulted on lease payments of INR 8,000 per unit, with no renewal of the agreement since 2021. Activists and local residents have reported that illegal occupants, some of whom paid significant deposits to agents, now face uncertainty about their future. Many such occupants lack documentation and fear losing their deposits as the MMRDA moves forward with evictions.
