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This article analyzes the political significance of the implementation of rent control legislation in Bombay between 1918 and 1928. The Indian city, which was actively involved in the British war effort, was indeed highly exposed to upheavals provoked by the conflict. This article seeks to ascertain whether, in enacting these controls, the colonial authorities followed the evolutions witnessed in Great Britain with regard to the state’s consideration of new social duties. To determine precisely which social or political demands the British sought to address in priority, the article examines in detail the context of the implementation and the legal provisions of these laws.