Tenants put the onus on State

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice M N Punchhi, Justice B N Kripal and Justice M Shrinivasan rejected mainly two review petitions filed by the State of Maharashtra and the Federation of Old Buildings Co-operative Society, two intervention applications by Maharashtra Housing Area Development Authority and Tenants Action Group and a writ petition of the Bombay TenantsAssociation.

Warning of possible trouble, Tenants Action Group activist Chandrashekhar Prabhu while vociferously laying the blame at the door of the Maharashtra government said, “The apex court clearly told the State that it was their earlier counsel D M Nargolkar who accepted and gave an undertaking for considering the National Model Law before framing a new legislation.” Prabhu informed that tenants were very distressed and their reactions harsh and bitter. “It entirely the doing of the Government. I appeal to tenants to maintain their calm and ensure there is no law and order problem."

Spelling his future agenda to empower tenants by pressurising the State to enact a law converting tenants into landlords, he said a committee meeting will be held next week to decide a line of agitation. While the mood is sombre among tenants, there is jubilation in the landlords camp. Executive president of Property Owners’ Association, B R Bhattad told The Indian Express, “After fifty years, justice hasbeen done. Rents were unfairly frozen to the 1940’s level. With the apex court rejecting these petitions, its December 17, 1997 order becomes operative.” Bhattad said that the new bill under consideration by the State Government will have to be just and fair to tenants and landlords. The December 17, 1997 order clearly states that any law if not in accordance with SC judgement will be considered “invalid as being arbitrary and violative of article 14 of the Constitution”.

Yesterday, the State government had petitioned the Centre to withdraw the Model Rent Control Act arguing that it went against the interests of the poor and middle class citizens. The plea was put forth when Minister of State for Housing Raj Purohit met Union Minister for Urban Development Ram Jethmalani. Purohit also urged Jethmalani to constitute a committee to go into the details of a new Rent Control Legislation.