Judgment

R.C. Lahoti, J.-Leave granted in SLP (C) Nos. 19877/01, 6064/02 & 8657/02).

2. The Bombay Port Trust (hereinafter ‘BPT’, for short), presently constituted and governed by the Major Port Trust Act, 1963, and now known as The Board of Trustees of the Port of Mumbai, is an ‘authority’ within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India. It has been the subject matter of several legislations governing its constitution, administration, powers and duties, some of which are The Bombay Port Trust Act, 1873, The Bombay Port Trust Act, 1879 and the Major Port Trust Act, 1963. Bombay, presently known as Mumbai, continues to be the commercial capital of the country. In spite of the development of several other ports having taken place along the coasts of India, some of them being of recent origin, the Bombay port continues to be the Gateway of India for international trade and commerce. Space is scarce in Mumbai as it is an island, and demands on its land are heavy in view of the ever-growing industrial, commercial and economic activities. Due to the availability or continuously growing modern infrastructure at Mumbai large sections of the population from throughout the countr