Vakola's newest 3,000sqm open space result of 12 years' fight against encroachment

MUMBAI: On March 16, Vakola welcomed the opening of a 3,000-square-metre open space — the largest the area has ever had. Named 'Bona Miranda Garden', a visit to it now shows children playing freely, women in sarees exercising at the open gym, and elderly residents enjoying their morning and evening walks.

In a city like Mumbai, where open spaces are scarce, this one didn’t come easy. It took a relentless 12-year battle led by former Congress corporator from Kalina, Brian Miranda, against a five-star hotel Grand Hyatt that failed to hand over the open space to the BMC as required after completing its construction.
Miranda, who was first elected as a corporator from Kalina in the municipal elections in 2012, took up the issue immediately in the second year of his term in 2013. "Even while I represented Kalina as a corporator, I lived in Vakola, and after a thorough study, found that there was a portion of open space besides the prime hotel which was due to be given to the BMC for public use but never handed over. This space was being used by the hotel itself,” said Miranda, who in July 2013, issued a legal notice to the BMC regarding encroachment on a 3,000 sq mt plot reserved for public use. This prompted the BMC to inspect the hotel premises.
Miranda’s fight was marked by years of bureaucratic delays, legal hurdles, and high drama. He went as far as filing a police complaint against a former BMC commissioner, but eventually decided against it, and the case even reached Justice M L Tahaliyani, who was serving as the Maharashtra Lokayukta. Tahaliyani directed the BMC to take possession of the plot, setting a deadline of March 31, 2018. He also warned of initiating departmental inquiries against any BMC officials who failed to act promptly.
Several rounds of back-and-forth negotiations with civic authorities followed. In 2017, when municipal elections were held again, Miranda’s corporator ward was reserved for a woman candidate. That’s when his wife, Advocate Tulip Miranda, stepped in. A new mother for the second time, Tulip won the election and took up the fight, ensuring the battle continued.
Despite the setbacks, Miranda refused to give up. “The last one week, since the garden opened, has been incredibly fulfilling. Vakola has never had an open space as large as this," said Miranda, who has named the garden after his father Bona Miranda.
The garden was inaugurated last week by Congress member of Parliament Varsha Gaikwad.
Vakola-resident Maxim Fernandes, 59, who lived in the vicinity, said he has seen the space transform from a party hotspot into a green lung that the area much needed. "I have seen parties, private events being held in this same place from outside, and now to see it turned into an open space that we all can use feels very good. It shows that persistent efforts by locals does pay off," said Fernandes.