Mumbai News: Tardeo’s Gamadia Parsi Boys’ Hostel Accused Of Evicting Employed Inmates; Trust Cites 'Students-Only' Rule

Mumbai: The Gamadia Boys Hostel in Tardeo, managed by the Bombay Parsi Punchayet, is caught up in a controversy after it asked employed inmates to leave as the facilities are only for students.

The BPP said they are acting by hostel rules that do not allow lodging facilities for working men. The trust accused the men of unruly behaviour and bullying student residents. In response, one of those asked to leave has sent a legal notice to the trust, accusing it of defamation and criminal intimidation.

BPP chairman, Viraf Mehta, said that though the hostel rules allow only students to stay, they had allowed some working men to use some vacant rooms on humanitarian grounds.

"But there have been allegations of drug usage and aggressive behaviour. We are wary of letting 30-year-old working men stay with 18-year-old students. The men have finished their studies and are working. They enroll in some course to show that they are students," said Mehta. The BPP also wants the inmates to vacate their rooms during student vacations in May and June for the annual maintenance of the building.

Mehta said the men refused to volunteer for work at fire temples. "Since non-Parsis cannot enter our shrines, we rely on volunteers from the community to clean and repair the interiors of the shrines. I did this work myself when I was doing my studies," Mehta said, adding that the trust has sent them a notice to vacate the rooms by December 2025.

The men said they pay 10% of their earnings to the hostel. "We come from modest towns, first-generation graduates. Some of us are the only earning members of our families. Sons to widows," the group said, asking whether rules are more important than the community's youth.

They said there is an unused dormitory at the hostel with more than 10 beds and other empty rooms. Pradeep Gupta, the lawyer representing one of the inmates, said the warden harassed the men and falsely accused them of illegal activities.

The issue has become a topic of debate among Parsis. "It is a manifestation of the dilemma facing the community. I do not blame the students or the BPP. The impression is that the students were driven out of their homes. The BPP should have taken the community into confidence and taken their advice on the matter instead of allowing social media to become the discussion forum," said Jehangir Patel, editor of the community magazine, Parsiana.

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