Mumbai: The State Human Rights Commission (SHRC), in response to a complaint filed by Mandeep Singh, a resident of GTB Nagar, regarding the unauthorized operation of a pay-and-park scheme at Shanmukhananda Hall, Matunga, has directed its office to incorporate DCP, Zone-4, as a respondent in the case.

The commission has also issued a summons requiring the submission of a fact-finding inquiry report into the matter on or before the next hearing date, March 17.

According to the complainant, a letter from the Senior Inspector of Police, Matunga Police Station, dated November 4, 2019, confirmed the operation of a pay-and-park scheme without a license at Shanmukhananda Hall. The complainant submitted his final statement on December 28, 2024, requesting the registration of an offence based on his complaint to Sion Police Station.

During the proceedings, the complainant referred to a letter by Police Inspector Laxman Sable, dated May 12, 2022, in which the Senior Police Inspector asked him to submit a video clip as evidence. The complainant stated that he had provided the requested video along with a detailed statement.

He further referred to information obtained through an RTI application, which included a note from a law officer advising the registration of an offence under Section 419 of the IPC. The complainant requested that his recorded statement from April 6, 2022, be considered in the case.

Earlier, in 2020, the Sion police had submitted a letter to the Senior Inspector of Matunga Police Station, forwarded by the Assistant Commissioner, F/North Ward. The letter stated that the issue of the pay-and-park scheme at Shanmukhananda Hall was purely administrative and fell under the discretion of the local Assistant Commissioner. As a result, the police department did not need to take cognizance of the complaint.

The response written by the police on to the complaint had maintained, “By direction, it is to inform you that the land in question belongs to the Hydraulic Engineer’s Department and includes both sides of the water main. In the past, M.C.G.M. (Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai) facilitated public parking by operating a pay-and-park scheme. However, this land was never a revenue source for M.C.G.M. Various Assistant Commissioners in the past have introduced such schemes purely to enhance public convenience. This remains an administrative matter under the jurisdiction of the local Assistant Commissioner, and therefore, there is no necessity for police intervention. Presently, no pay-and-park scheme is operational at the site. The area is now being developed for a cycling track along the Tansa water pipeline by the E.E.W.W. (Civil) Maintenance Department. All encroachments have been removed, and the site has been handed over to the E.E.W.W. (Civil) Maintenance Department, free from encroachments.”

However, after the complainant submitted his final statement on December 28, 2024, requesting the registration of an offence, the SHRC instructed its office to include DCP, Zone-4, as a respondent in the case. The commission has directed the submission of a fact-finding inquiry report into the matter by the next hearing date, with a copy to be provided to the complainant.