'Law Does Not Permit Discrimination': Bombay High Court To BMC Over 18-Year Delay In Housing Policy For Sanitation Workers
The Bombay High Court has observed that the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai cannot discriminate against sanitary workers merely because they belong to the lowest rung in the hierarchy of municipal employees. The Court noted that the State Government had formulated a policy in 2008 requiring the Municipal Corporation to provide housing to sanitary workers on ownership basis, but the policy has not been implemented for almost 18 years.
A division bench of Justice G. S. Kulkarni and Justice Dr. Neela Gokhale was hearing petitions concerning benefit conferred by the State Government to the sanitary workers of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation. The Court noted that sanitary workers perform vital public health functions and that the 2008 policy was formed obligating the Municipal Corporation to provide housing to the sanitary workers on an ownership basis.
Reflecting on the plight of the sanitary workers, the Court observed:
“… sanitary workers remain amongst the most exploited, marginalized and vulnerable workforces. They cannot be met with a plight of a systemic neglect, when it comes to their entitlement under the avowed Government Policy, to provide a permanent roof over their heads.”
The Court pulled up Municipal Corporation for its lackadaisical approach, and neglecting the workers' plea for such benefit for almost 18 years.
“… whether the Municipal Corporation with an abundance of resources available to it, including valuable lands which have already vanished from its public pool of lands for several reasons would continue to deprive the sanitary workers of such benefits,” the Court remarked.
The Court questioned the Municipal Corporation on the reason for such neglect, noting:
“… would it at all be conscionable for the Municipal Commissioner and/or the municipal machinery to neglect such class of employees merely because they belong to the lowest rung in the hierarchy of employees of the Municipal Corporation… law would not permit the Municipal Corporation to discriminate against the sanitary workers…”
The Court was considering an affidavit filed by the Municipal Commissioner pursuant to its earlier orders. The Court expressed its displeasure on non-compliance with its order dated 10 August 2026, in which the Court had directed the Corporation to place on record details of municipal lands and ascertain whether any of them could be utilised for implementing the housing policy.
The Court observed that the Government Resolution dated 22 October 2008 provided that the sanitary workers employed by the Municipal Corporation be given accommodation on ownership basis, but the Municipal Corporation has failed to implement it.
“… this policy, although framed in 2008, quite surprisingly, has not been implemented even to an inch, by the Municipal Corporation despite the passage of about 18 years. The sanitary workers since then are running from pillar to post to get the fruits of the said Government Policy,” the Court remarked.
The Court directed that the Municipal Commissioner place on record a further affidavit setting out the details of all the municipal lands as referred in the earlier affidavit of the Municipal Commissioner, including all the details of such lands qua its present occupancy, as referred in paragraph 3 of the order dated 10th August 2026.
Lastly, the Court noted that while large tracts of municipal lands have vanished from the municipal pool of lands to confer a bonanza of municipal gift to encroachers, the Municipal Corporation's own sanitary workers are being deprived of housing for 18 years.
Accordingly, the Court directed the Municipal Commissioner to reconsider the contents of the affidavit and place an appropriate fresh affidavit on record.
Case Title: Chandan Sharad Pawar v. Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai [Writ Petition No. 2172 of 2024 & Connected Matters]