Amrish Patel Seeks CM Intervention Over 16-Acre Land Row in Andheri and Juhu
In Mumbai's Andheri, Bharatiya Janata Party MLC Amrish Patel has sought Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis's immediate intervention to prevent the cancellation of three land allotments measuring 16 acres to an educational trust headed by him. The appeal comes amid growing controversy surrounding decisions by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority to lease the land parcels.
Following Patel's communication, Chief Minister Fadnavis directed BMC chief Ashwini Bhide and Mhada Vice-President and CEO Sanjeev Jaiswal to examine the representation and do the needful. Mhada owns two of the plots involved in the allotment process.
Patel, who serves as a trustee of the Shri Vile Parle Kelawani Mandal, which operates educational institutions including the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, wrote to Fadnavis asking him to speak directly to Bhide and Jaiswal. Claiming that the allotments were originally made with the Chief Minister's blessings, Patel urged him to instruct the officials against taking any adverse action.
The dispute gained momentum after Mumbai BJP chief and Andheri West MLA Ameet Satam submitted a letter formally opposing the land allotments. In response, Patel stated that taking any punitive steps based on Satam's objections could adversely affect students attending the trust's various academic institutes.
Under the existing arrangements, Mhada recently granted the trust two plots measuring close to four acres combined in Juhu and DN Nagar in Andheri. Subsequently, the BMC moved a separate proposal to lease another 12-acre plot in Andheri West to the same organization.
The civic body also granted a six-month extension to the validity of the trust's bid for the 12-acre Andheri West land parcel after the original bidding window lapsed on August 1. Officials have noted that bids are generally valid for only six months, and if an allotment proposal is not accepted within that timeframe, standard civic procedure dictates that the tender must be cancelled and a fresh one floated.
