Maharashtra: Residents fight eviction, allege selective demolitions
On the evening of August 13, Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) officials, accompanied by a heavy police presence, informed residents of Anam Palace, a residential building in Shil near Mumbra, that it would be demolished the following day. The notice came under a long-running legal dispute and a High Court-backed demolition drive against illegal constructions.
The case dates back two years, when a quarrel between the Vaskar brothers reached court. The land was jointly owned, but one brother built a residential structure without the other’s consent. The court ruled in favour of Subhash Vaskar, calling the construction an encroachment and ordering its demolition so that it remained uninhabitable. Acting on that order, TMC officials demolished the structure partially in 2023, forcing families out. But residents gradually returned, rebuilt portions and resumed living there.
In January this year, a fresh petition was filed in the Bombay High Court regarding illegal constructions in the AVK Compound. In February, the court found 17 buildings unauthorised and ordered their demolition. Calling the scale of violations “gross illegalities,” the court directed the Thane Sessions Court to appoint a judicial committee to survey and recommend further demolitions.
During its inquiry, the committee noted that Anam Palace had been reoccupied and rebuilt despite earlier demolition. In an interim report on Aug. 12, the panel recommended that the structure be razed again. A day later, TMC officials visited the site with police and told residents demolition would begin Aug. 14.
“No legal notice was given as the building was technically considered uninhabitable, but we needed to inform the residents so they could seek alternative accommodation,” a TMC official said.
Residents expressed shock. Abdul Aziz Bukhari, 80, said he and his wife had invested their lifetime savings into their flat. “At my age and health condition, how do they expect me to relocate overnight?” he asked.
On Aug. 14, residents, joined by neighbours from Mumbra and Shil, staged a protest that temporarily halted the demolition. Police cited a lack of available force due to Independence Day and Janmashtami security duties as the reason for the pause. Residents celebrated the delay as a small victory.
Afsana, a mother of two, said her husband drives a taxi and the family cannot afford to rent elsewhere. She alleged the demolitions disproportionately targeted Muslim-majority areas. “They are shielding similar buildings in non-Muslim areas,” she said.
Social activist Ganesh Munde, who also lives in the building, admitted the construction was illegal but questioned why no action was taken against officials and builders who facilitated it. “First hold those officers and builders accountable before punishing residents,” he said. Munde called for legislation to regularise such housing and said he planned to meet Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Residents allege that of more than 100 buildings identified for demolition, only those in Muslim areas have been targeted. They point to Anand Park in Diva, where the TMC halted demolition following resident protests.
On Aug. 15, residents met Shinde at his Thane residence. According to aide Anwar Kacche, Shinde assured them no demolition would take place until the monsoon ends and said the interim report would be reviewed during an Aug. 18 hearing in Thane Sessions Court.
Rafiq Kamdar, senior journalist and editor of Hindustani Reporter, said Anam Palace is different from earlier demolitions, which mostly involved vacant or partly inhabited buildings. “This is a one-sided communal demolition, not an enforcement of law,” Kamdar said. He claimed to have documented 177 other illegal buildings where no action was taken, and alleged the TMC carried out only token demolitions elsewhere.
Maktoob attempted to contact the responsible officers but received no response. In protest, residents hung gallows from balconies, declaring demolition would be “equivalent to taking their lives.”
For now, demolition has been temporarily halted, but residents remain anxious as notices have already been issued to other buildings nearby. Anam Palace, they say, has become more than a housing dispute — it symbolises resistance against what they call selective and communal demolitions.
“What happens here will set the tone for communities across India facing the same threat,” one resident said.
