Mumbai: Women will form the first line of defence in a human barricade to physically block police and civic officials who will arrive at the high-rise complex of Campa Cola Society to disconnect water and power supply to 35 illegal floors.
Over 500 residents are preparing to confront civic teams. “We will barricade the place. We are definitely not letting them in,” said a resident. Families that own the 100-odd illegal flats say they will do anything to stop police and the civic officials from entering the compound, just as they did during the last confrontation in November last year.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation or BMC, however, says it does not want to use force. It will film the proceedings and if there is violence, the civic agency plans to submit the footage to the Supreme Court.
In June last year, the Supreme Court had ordered families occupying the illegal flats to vacate the building by May 31. Their deadline to hand over the keys ended on June 12, but the residents threatened to pitch tents in the complex and live there.
“These people are going to come will destructive instruments. We don’t even have a kitchen knife, they will come with hammers, lathis… We are completely unarmed citizens. I do not know where we are going to stay,” said Vidaya Srinivasan, a resident.Â
The flats were built in the early 1980s. After various court hearings and stalled demolition orders, the residents moved the Supreme Court seeking an extension to buy more time to help legalise their home of three decades.
But the court on June 3 rejected their plea and ordered the residents to vacate their flats.