The Patil family, who have been rendered homeless, get legal aid from a city NGO after their lawyer steps down
The Patil family, who have been rendered homeless, get legal aid from a city NGO after their lawyer steps downTHE Patil family (Dilip Patil, wife Rita, and sons Glen and Clarence) were forced to take to the streets on Wednesday when recovery agents from a finance company shoved them out of their Andheri home, for a loan they had taken.
Dilip Patil and his sons sit out in the open in their building compound.
Pic/ Atul kamble Although they are still on a hunger strike, Sahayak, a non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) has offered them a helping handu00a0 after reading about their plight in MiD DAY ('Debt-ridden family made homeless', 'Homeless family on hunger strike' published on February 3 and 4 respectively).
On Friday, Patil's lawyer had stepped down since Patil couldn't afford to pay her legal fees. When Dr LB Tiwari, a representative of Sahayak NGO, approached Patil, he narrated the case details. Sahayak has now decided to fight Patil's case.
Patil, who lives in Empire Building in Sher-e-Punjab Society in Andheri (E) with his wife and two kids, got caught in a tussle with recovery agents after he skipped a few months' payment on a business loan of Rs 44 lakh.
When the husband and wife were at the Debts Recovery Tribunal Court, around 15 people forced themselves into their flat,u00a0 pushed their son out of the house and sealed it.
"I am happy that Dr Tiwari stood up for me. I hope we get justice," said Patil. "After reading about the family, our representative approached the family. We are seeking legal action," said Dr LB Tiwari, President and Head of the Legal Cell at Sahayak.
The NGO considers the family's ordeal as a violation of fundamental rights. Dilip Rajpurohit, representative of the Social Welfare and Justice Cell at Sahayak, said, "The unlawful act committed by the company shows the violation of fundamental rights of every citizen.
The message they have sent out is that they are above the law, and they can do whatever they want by hiring goons in the form of recovery agents." TN Mishra, representative of the Social Welfare and Justice Cell said we belong to a civilised society governed by law.
