MUMBAI: Mumbai Congress unit president Varsha Gaikwad on Monday alleged that retired “encounter specialists” have been tasked by the redevelopers of the Dharavi slum to “terrorise” the slum dwellers for vacating the land.
Billionaire Gautam Adani has formed a joint venture with the slum rehabilitation authority to redevelop Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum which houses nearly 68,000 slum dwellers. The project, one of the largest in India, was awarded to him earlier this year by the Maharashtra government.
“Many retired police officers and encounter specialists roam around Dharavi, issue notices and threaten the settlers. There is an air of oppression in the area. The people should be rehabilitated before commencing the project,” Gaikwad stated while speaking in the state assembly.
“The Dharavi redevelopment project (DRP) has been in talk for a while now. Earlier, we used to watch in movies that a builder has an eye on land and tries to usurp it by oppressing people living there. Today, Dharavi residents are witnessing and experiencing the same kind of oppression in reality,” she alleged.
Gaikawad, who is also a Congress MLA from Dharavi, asked the government to inform the Dharavi people about their rehabilitation. “If they [residents] are not given what they deserve before the project begins, we will launch a protest,” she added.
The Congress leader also asked the government to acquire a railway plot adjoining Dharavi. “The state government has paid Rs 900 crore for this railway plot. There are slums over it. No assurance has been given to slum dwellers living there and these encounter specialists are roaming and threatening them to vacate the plot,” Gaikwad alleged.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray supported Gaikawad in her demand saying that his party will not allow private developers to grab the land of slum dwellers. “The right of people is more important than development,” he said. “Unless and until the Dharavi residents are not rehabilitated properly, we will not allow the redevelopment project,” Thackeray added.