Tribunal quashes eviction notice issued to police sweepers

In an application filed before the MAT in 2019, working and retired police sweepers (class IV employees) challenged the eviction notices issued to the families in November 2019 by Worli senior inspector.

In one case, Room No 7 at Worli police camp was allotted to Chanchal Solanki as she was a serving sweeper in the police department. After her retirement in 2016, her son Kiran Solanki was appointed as a sweeper in the police department in 2017 on compassionate grounds following which he applied for transfer of the quarter to his name.

In another case, the son of a police sweeper, who passed away was appointed in his father’s place. In this case, also, the son had applied for transferring the quarter in his name.

However, in both these cases even though the application was pending, the applicants alleged that the Worli police senior inspector issued eviction notices. They further alleged that the inspector dispossessed them of their house and threw their belongings out in November 2019.

Police filed an affidavit contending that the possession of the applicants over service quarters was unauthorised and they were liable to be evicted since there was no transfer of service quarters in their name. The applicants, however, argued that the Worli senior inspector was required to initiate action for eviction through competent authority according to the procedure laid down in the ‘Eviction Act 1956’.

After hearing both sides, the Tribunal observed, “In view of the discussion of law and facts, the inevitable conclusion is that the Respondent No.3 (Worli senior inspector) acted very high-handedly in exercising powers purportedly under Section 31(2) of Maharashtra Police Act, and action is totally bad in law. Even if the possession is unauthorised, the respondents (police) were required to follow due process of law applicable to the matter and the applicant cannot be dispossessed in such a manner.”