HC declines urgent hearing of plea regarding Willingdon View’s lower floors

The court had earlier said the matter would be dealt with separately, after ordering the residents of floors 17-34 to vacate their flats due to the absence of a fire safety clearance and an occupation certificate

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday refused to grant an urgent hearing to a petitioner seeking clarity on the legal status of the first 16 floors of the 34-storey Willingdon View Cooperative Housing Society in Tardeo. The court had earlier said the matter would be dealt with separately, after ordering the residents of floors 17-34 to vacate their flats due to the absence of a fire safety clearance and an occupation certificate (OC).

The petitioner, Sunil Jhaveri, had moved the court in 2024, highlighting the illegality of Willingdon View in Tardeo, which has been partially occupied since 2008. (Raju Shinde/HT Photo)

A division bench of justices MS Karnik and SM Modak said there was no urgency to hear the matter at this time and directed the petitioner to file an additional affidavit within a week.

The petitioner, Sunil Jhaveri, had moved the court in 2024, highlighting the illegality of the building, which has been partially occupied since 2008. He said that the first 16 floors were issued a partial OC, the top 18 floors never received one, and the building did not have a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the fire department.

Following this, a bench of justices GS Kulkarni and Arif Doctor ordered the residents of floors 17-34 to vacate their flats, saying they had been illegally occupying them for over a decade. The court had clarified that it would hear the parties on issues other than the consequences of no fire clearance for the flats on the first 16 floors that have an OC separately, adding that it does not approve of residents living on these floors.

During the hearing on Tuesday, Jagtiani informed the court that a provisional fire NOC has been granted for the first 16 floors, but clarity is needed regarding the status and validity of the clearance. “The court has taken an extremely serious view of my petition. One of the issues has been partly resolved. Now, we need clarity on the status of the ground-to-16 floors,” he said.

The bench, however, stated that it did not find any urgency to hear the matter, but added, “This has to be put to an end.” The matter will now be heard on April 22.