Judgment

A.K. Mathur, J.—These appeals are ­directed against orders passed by learned ­Division Bench of the High Court of Bombay dated September 4, 1997 and September 8, 1999.

2. Initially a writ petition was filed before the High Court of Bombay by way of public interest litigation by the residents of Salisbury park and persons living around that area challenging the notification dated February 12, 1993 whereby an area admeasuring 1.50 acres of land was de-reserved from plot No. 438 of Salisbury Park within the Municipal limits of Pune which was reserved as a garden in the development plan. In order to promote ecology and to have congenial environment, a development plan was prepared on August 15, 1986 for Pune city under the erstwhile provisions of the Bombay Town Planning Act, 1954 and that development plan was carried out under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 (hereinafter to be referred to as the “1966 Act”) where under on September 18, 1982 a draft development plan was published by the Municipal Corporation of Pune purported to be under Section 26(1) of the 1966 Act. In that development plan Plot Nos. 437 and 438 were earmarked for the purposes of park and