Aaditya Thackeray Slams Maharashtra Govt’s ‘Pagdi-Free Mumbai’ Plan as Misleading

MUMBAI: Five days after Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced that the state would frame rules for the redevelopment of old pagdi buildings, describing it as a step towards making Mumbai pagdi-free, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray slammed the Maharashtra government for making misleading announcements. Thackeray claims these announcements are meant to appease voters ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, favoring builders and landowners at the cost of long-time residents.

Addressing a press conference, Thackeray urged Mumbaiites not to “succumb to false promises” and claimed the government’s real intent was to push ordinary residents out of the city. “Try to understand the truth behind these announcements. They want to throw people out of Mumbai,” he said.

The pagdi system is a pre-Independence tenancy arrangement prevalent in south and central Mumbai. Under this system, tenants paid a one-time premium to landlords and, in return, enjoyed near-permanent occupancy by paying a nominal rent. Over decades, redevelopment of such buildings has remained stalled due to disputes between landlords and tenants, many of whom are protected under the Maharashtra Rent Control Act.

Shinde, who also heads the Ministry of Housing (Maharashtra), announced a new regulatory framework to redevelop pagdi buildings, calling it a “historic decision” that would eventually make Mumbai free of such properties. The announcement, made in the run-up to the civic polls, is expected to affect thousands of tenants.

Thackeray, however, alleged that the policy favors landowners and builders, not residents. “Builders and landlords will benefit, but residents will not,” he said, demanding that tenants in pagdi buildings be declared legal ‘occupants’ and granted stronger protection. He also questioned which authority— Mhada or the state government— would be competent to oversee the process.

Recalling decisions taken during the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Uddhav Thackeray, he said an ordinance had been introduced to give residents redevelopment rights if owners failed to act within six months. “That decision was challenged in court and the matter is pending, but it was an important step towards solving the pagdi problem,” he said.

Thackeray also criticized the provision in the new framework that promises occupants the same carpet area after redevelopment. “Why should residents not get additional area when a building is redeveloped?” he asked, reiterating his demand that redevelopment rights should first rest with Mumbai’s residents, not landowners alone.

Launching a political attack, Thackeray referred to Eknath Shinde as “Fakenath Mindhe” and dubbed the BJP the “Builder Janata Party”. He claimed that several recent government announcements were aimed at covering up failures. “Whether it was the promise to increase the Ladki Bahin scheme benefit from ₹1,500 to ₹2,100 or farm loan waivers, all these announcements were misleading,” he alleged.

Listing MVA-era decisions, Thackeray said the previous government had set aside ₹600 crore for police housing and decided to provide ownership homes to retired police personnel in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, issues on which he alleged the current government had remained silent. He also said the Mahayuti government had ignored housing problems faced by government employees at the Bandra government colony.

Thackeray further expressed concern over delays in releasing the final voter list for the BMC elections. He said lakhs of errors and anomalies had been flagged in the draft list, but no response had been received. “The state election commission said the final voter list would be released today, but even by afternoon it was neither uploaded on the website nor given to us in hard copy. If these anomalies remain, who will rectify them?” he asked.