Confirmation of purchase notice by the State Government and failure to act by the Municipal Corporation led to the lapse of reservation under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act.

JUDGMENT :

R.D. DHANUKA, J.

1. Rule. Mr. Alaspurkar, learned A.G.P. waives service for the respondent no. 1. Mr. Patil, waives service for the respondent no. 2. Rule is made returnable forthwith.

2. By this petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner seeks a declaration that the reservation, designation, allotment, indication or restriction on the development of the land admeasuring 3032 sq. mtrs. has lapsed and the said land is available to the petitioner for the purpose of development, otherwise permissible in the case of adjacent land, under the sanctioned Development Plan of Pune City.

3. The petitioner also seeks a writ of mandamus against the respondent no. 1 to issue appropriate declaration and notify the same in the Government Gazette as provided in section 127(2) of the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966. Some of the relevant facts for the purpose of deciding this petition are as under.

4. The petitioner is the owner of the writ land which was shown to have been reserved in the sanctioned Development Plan of Pune City for ‘municipal purpose’ under reservation No. MP 17. On 11th July, 2017, the petitioner issued notice under section 49(7) of the MRTP Act to the State Government to purchase the said land. The petitioner also requested for a personal hearing.

5. On 17th January, 2018, the State Government confirmed the purchase notice and directed the Municipal Corporation to take requisite steps for acquisition of the said land within a period of one year. On 16th January, 2019, one year period as prescribed under section 49(7) of the MPRT Act expired. It is the case of the petitioner that the respondent no. 2 however did not take any steps. The petitioner issued a notice on 10th April, 2019 to the State Government as well as the Municipal Corporation contending that as provided under section 49(7) of the MRTP Act, the reservation imposed on the land of the petitioner had lapsed and requested for issuance of the appropriate declaration and notify the same in the Government Gazette as provided in section 127(2) of the MPRT Act, 1966.

6. The State Government addressed a letter dated 17th January, 2018 to the respondent no. 2 Corporation to take appropriate steps in compliance with the notice issued by the petitioner. On 30th May, 2018, the Municipal Commissioner addressed a communication to the Secretary of the Pune Municipal Corporation stating that the Corporation is required to take steps expeditiously in compliance with the provisions under section 49(7) of the MRTP Act. Since no steps were taken, the petitioner filed this writ petition.

7. Mr. D.S. Patil, learned counsel for the petitioner invited our attention to the purchase notice issued by his client and also other correspondence annexed to the petition. He states that in response to the said purchase notice issued by the petitioner, the State Government by letter/order dated 17th January, 2018 confirmed the said purchase notice. He states that one year thereafter expired on 16th January, 2019, however the respondent Corporation did not take any steps for acquiring the said land. He also relied upon internal communication dated 30th May, 2018 from the Commissioner of the Corporation to the Secretary of the Pune Municipal Corporation admitting that the requisite steps were to be taken within the time contemplated under section 49(7) of the MRTP Act.

8. He submitted that since no steps were taken admittedly within one year from the date of order confirming the purchase notice by the respondent no. 1, the reservation of the plot of the petitioner stood lapsed under section 49(7) of the MRTP Act.

9. Learned counsel invited our attention to various averments in the affidavit in reply filed by the State of Maharashtra and more particularly in paragraphs 2 to 4. He states that the State Government has admitted that under section 49(7) of the MRTP Act the purchase notice has been confirmed by the State on 17th January, 2018. The resp