The Bombay High Court has held that a subsequent declaration of a property as a Slum Area does not, by itself, require permission of the Competent Authority under Section 22(1)(b) of the Maharashtra Slum Areas (Improvement, Clearance and Redevelopment) Act, 1971, where execution proceedings for an eviction decree had already been instituted before such declaration. The Court observed that a subsequent declaration does not retrospectively alter the nature or validity of execution proceedings already instituted.

Justice Arun R. Pedneker was hearing a petition challenging the order of the Appellate Bench of the Small Causes Court, which had dismissed an application under Section 47 of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908, and upheld the order of the Small Causes Court in execution proceedings.

The Respondents had obtained an eviction decree dated August 24, 2015, which was challenged in appeal. In the Execution Application preferred by the respondent, the petitioner filed an objection under Section 47 of the CPC. During the pendency of the execution proceedings, the larger property, including the suit premises, was declared as a Slum Area under Section 4(1) of the Slum Act on December 18, 2018. The Petitioners now objected to the execution of the decree on the ground that permission of the Competent Authority was required under Section 22(1)(b) of the Slum Act.

The Respondents submitted that the execution application had been instituted in 2016, before the property was declared as a Slum Area, and therefore the requirement of prior permission did not arise.

The Court noted that the principal question for consideration is whether the subsequent declaration of the suit property as a Slum Area mandates obtaining permission of the Competent Authority under Section 22(1)(b) of the Slum Act for continuing the execution proceedings for execution of an eviction decree.

The Court held that where execution itself is instituted before declaration of the property as a Slum Area, a subsequent declaration cannot render the decree inexecutable.

“Where the execution itself is instituted before the declaration of the property as a Slum Area, a subsequent declaration of the property as a Slum Area cannot, by itself, render the decree inexecutable without obtaining permission. The subsequent declaration does not retrospectively alter the nature or validity of the execution proceedings already instituted,” the Court remarked.

Hence, the Court held that the requirement of prior permission does not suspend the execution of an eviction decree merely on account of a subsequent declaration of suit property as being in a slum area. It highlighted that the bar under Section 22 of the Act applies for institution of the proceedings without permission of the Competent Authority.

The petition was accordingly dismissed.

Case Title: Sachin S/o. Purshottam Poojari v. Miss. Flymi Sadanandan [Writ Petition No. 12362 of 2025]

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