MUMBAI, Aug. 26 -- The last-minute battle of Willingdon Cooperative Housing Society (CHS) residents yielded a glimmer of hope on Monday when, after more than eight hours of waiting at the Byculla fire brigade office, they finally secured a fire compliance letter. Though not a formal Fire NOC, the letter is now their most critical document to present in court, as families living on the 17th to 34th floors of the Tardeo high-rise race against an August 27 eviction deadline. The Bombay High Court has held that the upper floors of the 2010-built tower are illegal in the absence of a full Occupancy Certificate (OC) and a fire safety NOC. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court refused to intervene, clearing the way for eviction. Residents had already given a written undertaking to the BMC agreeing to vacate by August 27, but the compliance letter has revived their hopes of a last-minute reprieve. On Monday morning, nearly 50 residents, including senior citizens, gathered outside the fire brigade's Byculla headquarters. They carried placards and pleaded with officers, insisting that their building had now met all 17 safety requirements - from sprinklers on every floor to setting up diesel generator sets and even constructing a nine-metre-wide ramp for emergency vehicle access. Agripada police were briefly called in to disperse the protest, which lasted from 11.15am until 4.30pm. As a last-ditch measure, the residents also sought help from political leaders, including state cabinet minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha and former MP Gopal Shetty. Speaking from the fire office, former BJP MP Gopal Shetty, who has been closely involved with the society, confirmed, "All fire compliances are fulfilled and they are issuing a letter. Willingdon CHS advocates have already filed an interim application in the court and it is listed. It will come for a hearing tomorrow and we are hopeful that justice will be done." When contacted, chief fire officer Ravindra Ambulgekar declined to comment, citing the sub judice status of the matter. The deadline comes at a time of festivities - August 27 marks the start of Ganesh Chaturthi and the conclusion of Paryushan, a Jain festival of self-purification. Many Willingdon residents are Jains who would otherwise spend this period in prayer and fasting, but instead face the prospect of vacating their homes. "We've exhausted our resources, financially and emotionally. But until the very last day, we will fight to protect our homes," said Mahesh Shivahare, society secretary and a 24th-floor resident. Others worry about the practical fallout: two families have weddings planned, several residents are elderly and unwell, and many say finding rental flats in Tardeo on short notice is near impossible due to widespread redevelopment. "There's a shortage of flats. We need at least 40 within 10 days. Uprooting people at this stage is not just difficult, it's cruel," Satish Mehta, a 34th-floor resident had earlier told HT. Shetty invoked the example of 2014 Campa Cola case in Worli, where residents of unauthorised floors were spared demolition for years after political intervention and Supreme Court relief under Article 142, recalling how political leaders, including MP Lodha, Raj Purohit, and Shaina NC had stepped in to save homes. But the Bombay HC had already dismissed the parallels. Campa Cola was an issue of excess Floor Space Index (FSI), while Willingdon involves the absence of fire safety clearance - a violation courts have said cannot be condoned on humanitarian grounds. The origins of the crisis date back to 2018, when the BMC served its first notice under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, declaring the upper floors unauthorised. A follow-up notice this February reaffirmed the eviction order. The demise of the builder and the disappearance of his son left residents in a legal limbo, with no promoter to complete pending compliances. Since early August, however, residents have scrambled to finish fire-safety work. Fire officials inspected the premises on August 14 and 18, paving the way for Monday's compliance letter. The society's lawyers will now press for its acceptance in court when the matter will come up for hearing on Tuesday....