Fadnavis will meet housing minister, bureaucrats on Thursday
Following pressure put by BJP legislators and stiff protests by pagdi tenants, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis is going to review the draft policy, which is proposed for the amendment of Maharashtra Rent Control Act, 1999. According to BJP MLAs, the CM has called a meeting on Thursday with housing minister Prakash Mehta and senior bureaucrats of the housing department to review the draft before it is presented in the Cabinet.
The state government a week ago had announced that it would charge rent according to the prevailing market rates for residential tenants living in spaces above 847 square feet and commercial tenants in spaces above 540 square feet, both under the erstwhile ‘pagdi system’.
“I met chief minister at his bungalow Varsha on Saturday and he promised that our government will not take any decision which will be anti-tenant. He said he will conduct a review meet with Mr Mehta and housing department officials before taking a final call on the same,” said Raj Purohit, Colaba MLA whose constituency will be one of the worst affected if the Act is amended.
The reason behind amending the Act, according to the state government, is that it has given an undertaking to the Centre that while adopting the Centre’s ‘Housing For All’ scheme it would incorporate provisions of the draft of the Centre’s Model Rent Control Act in the state’s Rent Control Act.
However, various associations like that of Retail Traders’ Welfare Association Federation, Association of Hotels and Restaurant (AHAR), and civic activists have protested the amendment saying it is just for the benefit of the landlord and builder lobby. The amendment has also irked Mr Purohit and Mangal Prabhat Lodha, an MLA from the Malabar Hills constituency, which has many pagdi tenants.
Both Mr Purohit and Mr Lodha conducted public meetings on Sunday in their respective constituencies and promised voters they would not allow the government to amend the Act.
“I have met the chief minister and I am also going to meet housing minister on Monday and I am very hopeful that Mr Fadnavis in a meeting with Mr Mehta on Thursday will review its decision and take back the proposal,” said Mr Lodha.
Sources in the BJP said the chief minister is not happy with the way controversy has again cropped up after the same decision over the amendment was dropped after similar protests in June 2015.
The amendment has also received criticism from Shiv Sena and Congress leaders who have pointed out that the amendment will result in displacement of lakhs of tenants. However, real estate experts are of the view that amending the Act is a must.
“In past 60 years the cost of registration, stamp duty, ready reckoner rates including other taxes have increased. So what is the reason behind landlords not being able to charge market rates,” said Ajay Chaturvedi, chief executive officer, Accommodation Times, a bimonthly that covers the real estate sector.
