Mumbai: After protests by residents on Monday morning, work on a public pathway connecting the Mount Mary Steps, Bandra (West) with a slum was stopped when the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation found that the land for the path belonged to the Mount Mary Basilica.
Protest Trigger
Lilian Pais from the Mount Carmel unit of the Bombay Catholic Sabha, an organisation of lay Catholics, said they were alerted about the illegal construction by unknown persons. “A wall was being constructed on the flat area next to the steps. We gathered there for a silent protest,” said Pais. “The land belongs to the church. I know this because I was part of the survey (to identify the church land).”
Karen D’mello, the newly elected corporator from the area, said that municipal officials and police who came there asked the contractors to remove the wall and clear the place of bricks and other construction materials. “We do not know what the encroachers were up to,” said D’mello.
BMC Clarification
Deepak Pallewad, assistant municipal commissioner of H West ward, said that there was a demand for a passage to a slum. “Accordingly, we issued a work order. When our contractor went to the site, he found that the land belonged to the church. When this was brought to my notice, we stopped the work. There was no illegal construction on the site. Work was supposed to start in a few days,” said Pallewad. “It is a trivial matter. There was no nuisance.”
The incident mobilised the city’s Catholic community. Advocate Godfrey Pimenta of the citizens’ group, Watchdog Foundation, who wrote to the municipal administration and police, demanded the filing of an FIR and a case under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act.
”Over the past several days, unauthorised construction activities have been steadily springing up next to the Mount Mary steps, encroaching upon what is clearly designated as open/public space. This area forms part of a historically sensitive precinct and falls within a heritage zone that must be protected from such violations,” said Pimenta, who added that the Mount Mary precinct is not just a religious landmark but an integral part of Mumbai’s heritage and urban identity. “Allowing unchecked illegal construction here sets a dangerous precedent and undermines public faith in governance, heritage conservation, and the rule of law,” Pimenta said.
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