Supreme Court Upholds Landmark Slum Rehabilitation Verdict

The Supreme Court upheld a 2018 Bombay High Court decision invalidating Maharashtra's acquisition of Kurla land for slum rehabilitation. The court affirmed landowners' preferential redevelopment rights under the Maharashtra Slum Areas Act. Indian Cork Mills can submit a new redevelopment scheme within 120 days, with expedited processing by the SRA.

The Supreme Court has upheld a 2018 verdict from the Bombay High Court that annulled the Maharashtra government's acquisition of land in Mumbai's Kurla area, aiming for slum rehabilitation.

The bench, including Justices Surya Kant and N K Singh, concurred that landowners possess a preferential right to redevelop their property, in line with the Maharashtra Slum Areas (Improvement, Clearance and Redevelopment) Act, 1971.

The ruling allows Indian Cork Mills Pvt. Ltd. (ICM), the landowner, to propose a new redevelopment scheme, while the court advised the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) and the state to process it swiftly.