Bombay HC Seeks Govt, BMC Clarification On Granting Heritage Status To Savarkar Sadan In Dadar

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has asked the government and the BMC to clarify their stands on the issue of granting heritage status to Savarkar Sadan in Dadar.

A bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne sought clarification while hearing a PIL filed by Abhinav Bharat Congress, a Hindu organisation led by Pankaj K. Phadnis, seeking heritage protection for the building.

Savarkar Sadan, located in Shivaji Park, was once the residence of Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. The PIL urged the state government to act on a 2012 recommendation by the BMC to include the building in Mumbai’s official Heritage List. The petitioner highlighted that despite this recommendation, the Urban Development Department had failed to take action for over a decade.

It was only in February, after an email from the Chief Minister’s Office, that the department was directed to examine the matter. However, concerns remain that the property could be demolished before any heritage status is conferred. The petition cited news reports suggesting imminent demolition of the structure.

Earlier, the Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC) had recommended granting heritage status to Savarkar Sadan, and accordingly, the BMC had written to the government to grant the status. However, till date, there has been no development.

On Tuesday, the government pleader said that the MHCC would have to give a fresh recommendation for the heritage status, to which Justice Marne asked: “What was the problem with the earlier recommendation? MHCC recommended, so BMC wrote to you (government) to declare it as a Grade II Heritage structure.”

The court then asked the government and BMC to file affidavits in two weeks and scheduled the plea for hearing on August 6.

The petition also urged the Central government to consider declaring Savarkar Sadan a “Monument of National Importance,” even though it currently falls short of the 100-year age requirement under existing norms. Drawing a comparison with Jinnah House, which enjoys protected heritage status, the petitioner questioned why similar recognition was denied to Savarkar Sadan.

Among the reliefs sought are interim protection to prevent any changes to the building, formal inclusion in the heritage list, a central policy to grant national recognition, and compensation for Savarkar’s legal heirs in case redevelopment rights are affected.