Mumbai: BMC’s general body led by BJP-Shiv Sena on Tuesday approved a proposal to change the reservation of the Neville D’Souza Football Ground at Bandra Reclamation from a playground to a convention and exhibition centre even though it told Bombay HC last week that it would file its reply on Aug 20 in an affidavit to a plea against the plan.A civic official said since the court did not restrain BMC from taking any action, the proposal was tabled.The plan was moved by improvement committee chairman and Shiv Sena corporator Sandhya Doshi.The decision came amid growing protests and raised concerns among Mumbai Football Association (MFA), the city’s football fraternity and citizens as the ground is the only functional full-sized football facility available to MFA in the city. Around 8,000 players use the ground for competitions, making it a crucial hub for Mumbai’s football ecosystem. Footballers, coaches and clubs have opposed the proposal, warning that taking away the ground would severely impact the sport at grassroots and competitive levels.MFA had challenged the proposal in HC. Following BMC’s submission on its reply, the court had posted the petition for urgent admissions on Aug 24.The BMC’s decision to change the reservation drew strong political opposition, with Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress accusing the governing dispensation of eating further into Mumbai’s shrinking open spaces and seeking to retain the plot as a playground.Sena (UBT) MLA and MFA president Aaditya Thackeray alleged that BMC’s move was part of a larger plan to reduce open spaces in the city. “This BMC resolution is not surprising. It’s part of CM Devendra Fadnavis’s plan to reduce all open spaces in the city.”Thackeray also questioned BMC’s decision to proceed with the proposal while the matter was before Bombay HC. He claimed the civic body had assured the court that it would not vote on the proposal before filing its response. “We are not going to stay quiet. We will have huge road protests,” Thackeray said.Congress’s Ashraf Azmi too questioned BMC’s decision while the legal challenge is pending.Congress corporator from Bandra Raja Rahebar Khan said the ground had a deep connection with locals and had been used by generations of youngsters. He said around 200 clubs were associated with the ground. “We had opposed the proposal at the improvement committee meeting when it was sanctioned. This has been my ward since 2007. This is the ground where we played when we were young and grew up. We played football here even before it had a reservation, as well as cricket. If we, as corporators, cannot save this ground, it is a shame.”MFA has argued before HC that the proposed change would be detrimental at a time when Mumbai’s open spaces are rapidly diminishing. It has described the improvement committee’s recommendation as ex facie “arbitrary and illegal”. HC had directed BMC to file its response to the MFA’s plea by Aug 20 and said Mhada was also at liberty to file its affidavit.The opposition also raised concerns over the broader implications of converting recreational land for commercial or event-related use. They argued that Mumbai needs more accessible public spaces, not fewer, and warned that the loss of the Bandra Reclamation plot would set a troubling precedent for the city’s remaining recreational grounds.
