Olga Tellis vs. Bombay Municipal Corporation, (1985) 3 SCC 545 (India)

The petitioners live on pavements and in slums in Bombay. Respondents States of Maharashtra and Bombay decided to evict the pavement and slum dwellers to be deported to their places of origin. Petitioners challenged the decision on the grounds that evicting a dweller from his habitat amounts to a deprivation of his right to livelihood which is comprehended in the right to life under the Constitution, although it is admitted that they have no fundamental right to construct huts on the pavement. According to the court, the right to life is wide and far reaching. An equally important facet of that right is the right to livelihood because no person can live without the means of living. However, there is no absolute embargo to the deprivation of the right to life under the Constitution, provided the procedure prescribed by law for its deprivation is fair, just and reasonable. Here, the pavement dwellers had the right to be heard before the court. The court denied the petition. Nevertheless, it directed that the eviction shall not be implemented until the end of the monsoon season to minimize the hardship of the slum dwellers.