The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered an immediate freeze on the November salary of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner Ashwini Bhide and other civic officials while initiating contempt of court proceedings against her for failing to clear encroachments from government land.
The three-judge bench also rejected the civic body’s request for an additional 30 days to comply with its earlier directions to clear the land earmarked for a Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus station in mumbai‘s Borivali and imposed costs of Rs 5 lakh.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana issued a show-cause notice to Bhide, asking why contempt action should not be initiated against her for failing to implement the court’s orders.
The bench made it clear that the Commissioner and other officials would not receive their salaries until the show-cause notice was decided and the court’s directions were complied with.
“You will not be drawing a salary till the 1st of December 2026. So comply before that. You come here and then you can draw your salary,” said Justice Bagchi.
During the hearing, the bench questioned the conduct of municipal officials and suggested that they could be colluding with encroachers to delay compliance with the court’s directions.
“Does it not show that your officers are colluding? We will send him to jail and then he will understand the sanctity of the Supreme Court order. Is he obliging us?” CJI Surya Kant remarked.
The Chief Justice further described the failure to clear the land as a deliberate attempt to obstruct the court’s directions, allegedly with the support of those occupying the property.
“This is an absolutely mischievous breach of the directions of the Supreme Court, with the direct connivance and support of the encroachers. If you want us, we can write all of this in the order itself,” he said.
Justice Joymalya Bagchi made it clear that the civic body could not seek further relief from the court while its earlier directions remained unimplemented.
SUPREME COURT REFUSES 30-DAY EXTENSION
The bench also rejected the BMC’s request for 30 days to complete the eviction process, making it clear that no further extension would be granted.
“We are very clear that we are dismissing the application and we will not grant a single day’s extension. Let them sit in the midnight and pass the orders. Let them know how to work,” CJI Kant said.
The court also took exception to the BMC’s submission that local officials needed Marathi documents to be translated into English before proceeding with the eviction exercise.
Questioning the explanation, Justice Bagchi referred to the affidavit filed by an officer named Dr Tambe and asked whether civic officials were genuinely unable to understand Marathi.
“The officer who filed the affidavit is Dr Tambe. Do you want us to believe that they do not know Marathi?” he asked.
Directing that salary payments remain suspended until the show-cause notice is decided, Justice Bagchi told the BMC’s counsel that the Commissioner would have to comply with the court’s directions before seeking the release of her salary.
“You will not be drawing a salary till the 1st of December 2026. So comply before that. You come here and then you can draw your salary,” he said.
WHAT IS BORIVALI BEST BUS STATION DISPUTE?
The case concerns a plot of land in Borivali earmarked for a public BEST bus station. The property has been at the centre of prolonged litigation between the BMC and a private developer.
In August 2025, the Supreme Court directed the private developer to hand over vacant and peaceful possession of the plot, including an administrative building, to the BMC.
The court had given the civic body a strict three-month deadline to take possession of the property, remove the remaining encroachments in accordance with the law and ensure that the bus station became fully operational.
However, the land had not been cleared even by November 2025, prompting the Supreme Court to express serious dissatisfaction with the progress made by the civic authorities.
The court subsequently directed the BMC Commissioner to file a personal affidavit detailing the occupants on the land, eviction notices issued to them and any pending claims relating to tenancy or ownership.
The latest proceedings follow the civic body’s failure to complete the eviction exercise despite the Supreme Court’s earlier directions, prompting the bench to initiate contempt proceedings against the Commissioner.
– Ends
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