KLANG, Nov 19 — The residents of Jalan Bukit Kerayong here have settled their lawsuit against the developer of the settlement after the latter agreed to allow the group to remain at their present homes until redevelopment is completed.

In a consent judgement issued by the Shah Alam High Court yesterday, the court ruled that the 16 families were not illegally occupying the 50-acre plot in Pandamaran and will only need to vacate the land within 14 days of completion of the project.

Melati Ehsan Consolidated Sdn Bhd, the developer looking to transform the area into mixed residential and commercial development, must also present the families with offer letters to purchase properties in the project within the same time frame.

Melati Ehsan — the same developer who tore down Kampung Chubadak Tambahan in Sentul recently — will in return get full possession of the land upon completion of the project, on condition that they offer the families homes and shoplots in the project at a discounted rate.

John Fam, who represented the families, said the judgement was consistent with the Selangor state government’s prevailing position that the current occupants of the land were settlers and not squatters as initially claimed by the developer.

“These people who are occupying the land were in fact holding Temporary Occupational Licences (TOL) and they have also been paying the fee deemed necessary,” Fam told a news conference here today.

The fight to protect the livelihoods and homes of Jalan Bukit Kerayong residents started way back in 2007, when the residents filed a lawsuit against Melati Ehsan after they were served with eviction notices to make way for the multi-million ringgit project.

The developer had labelled Jalan Bukit Kerayong residents as squatters when serving them with the notice to vacate the land.

“This is a settlement that has turned out very well and a victory for the concerned parties,” Fam said during a press conference at Klang MP Charles Santiago’s service centre here.

Santiago, who was also present, said the Selangor government handed in 1995 over two parcels of land — Jalan Bukit Kerayong and Jalan Papan, measuring 145 acres — to a Bank Negara Malaysia subsidiary, Tabung Project Perumahan Terbengkalai (TPPT) Sdn Bhd, for development.

However, TPPT later entered into a private agreement with Melati Ehsan, which then sought to evict the residents.

“If the residents had lost the case, it would have spelt the end of their livelihood as they have nowhere else to go,” he said, adding that negotiations are still ongoing for those living in Jalan Papan.

Santiago said that the case should also set as a precedent for other developers to prevent further recurrences of such scenarios.

Dominic See, the president of the action committee, said that Jalan Bukit Kerayong houses over 300 predominantly Chinese homes.

“Most of them there are skilled workers who run their own carpentry venture, workshops and welding business,” See, who himself is a welder, said.

He said that most were businesses that were passed down through generations.

“We would have lost our source of income had we lost the case. Most of them here are old folks. Where would they go? Who would hire them?”