Mumbai: No OC for Tardeo tower without Rs 32 crore payment

The Willingdon Heights Cooperative Housing Society, a 34-storey high-rise in Tardeo. PIC/ATUL KAMBLE

The residents of Tardeo's Willingdon Heights building are now facing a major hurdle in obtaining the Occupancy Certificate (OC), as the BMC has asked them to pay a heavy penalty of Rs 32 crore. "They have complied with fire safety requirements and have applied for the OC. They are supposed to pay Rs 32 crore as a penalty, which they have reluctantly agreed to. Once it is paid, we will inform the High Court," municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani told mid-day.

However, Narendra Bhandari, the building's chairman, told mid-day that nothing had been given to them in writing by the BMC as of Thursday. "The BMC architect had indicated that roughly this much amount would have to be paid. But so far, we have not received any specific figure in writing," he said.

When asked about Bhandari's statement, Gagrani did not respond. Meanwhile, a hearing in the case scheduled for Thursday was cancelled. "The Division Bench presided over by Hon'ble Shri Justice GS Kulkarni and Hon'ble Shri Justice Arif S Doctor will not take up ‘Chamber Main Causelist' scheduled for today, ie 04.09.2025, at 2:45 pm," read the HC notice. This means that residents will now have to continue living in makeshift homes at their offices, hotels, or relatives' places for many more days, or even months.

Residents at Tardeo's Willingdon Heights protest outside the BMC headquarters on August 27. File Pic/Atul Kamble

"We have set up our home inside my office in South Mumbai. The small pantry, which was earlier just enough to make tea or Maggi, is now used by my wife as a kitchen to cook meals. Though we mostly order from outside, as it is difficult to manage in that little space. My conference room has become our living room and bedroom, and our suitcases are our wardrobes," said Jiten Choksey, one of the affected residents.

Adding to this, Bhandari and another resident, Drashti Mistry, told mid-day that they are currently living with their nephew and uncle, respectively. "It's not easy to pay such a huge amount. People think that just because we live in South Mumbai, we are rich. But that is not the case. Some of us have taken home loans to buy a house in this building. We also belong to the working class," said one of the residents, on condition of anonymity.

Another major challenge for the residents is that they may have to bear an even bigger burden, as many flats belong to Videocon, and some residents "will be reluctant to pay." Bhandari said, "We will try our best to convince the BMC and the court to reduce the penalty as much as possible. We will also request the court to make Videocon pay its share for the 10 flats it owns. On the other hand, the committee will try to persuade residents to bear the cost while thinking about long-term benefits. Other than this, there is not much we can do if we want to continue living in this building."

Real estate lawyer, Advocate Vinod Sampat said, "In this case, since the developer is at fault, a partial penalty should be levied on the developer as well. However, in rare cases where the developer is dead or absconding and the residents have no choice, they may have to pay the entire penalty. It depends on what HC decides in such cases."

The case

SC had upheld a Bombay HC order stating that floors 18 to 34 of Tardeo's Willingdon Heights were built without an Occupation Certificate, leaving 32 families facing eviction. While the first 17 floors have partial approval, the entire 34-storey tower still lacks a fire department NOC.