IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO. 1204 OF 2010 Arvind Balaji Walvekar …Petitioner Vs.

1. State of Maharashtra Through the Hon’ble Minister Revenue Department, Mantralaya, Mumbai.

2.Additional Commissioner, Pune Division, Pune.

3.Additional Collector, Pune.

4. Sub-Divisional Officer Pune Division, Pune.

5. Tahsildar, Taluka Pune City, Pune.

6. Shri Girish Pandurang Gavandi 7. Shri Jagdish Pandurang Gavandi

8. Smt. Kishori Datta Naik

9. Shri Suresh Pandurang Gavandi, Since deceased through LRs 9a.Pratibha Suresh Gavandi

9b. Sanjay Suresh Gavandi

9c. Ajay Suresh Gavandi

9D. Rajendra Suresh Gavandi – Expired. Leaving behind following L.H. and L.R.

9D-A. Meenakshi Rajendra Gavandi

9D-B. Shrikan Rajendra Gavandi.

9D-C. Mrs. Priyanka Rohit Naik (Daughter)

10. Jayant Vishwanath Gavandi

11. Ravindra Jayant Gavandi

12. Shantanu Ravindra Gavandi

13. Shri Siddharth Ravindra Gavandi

14. Shri Kishor Kantilal Gandhi

15. Shri Shreenath Yashwant Bhimale.

16. Shri Atik Habib Ansari.

17. Deleted

18. Umesh Dattatray Dhone 19. Santosh Dattatray Dhone 20. Ramesh Dattatray Dhone

21. Mangal Dattatray Dhone Since Deceased through Legal Heirs.

21(a) Dattatray Shankarrao Dhone, 21(b) Umesh Dattatray Dhone. 21(c) Santosh Dattatray Dhone, 21(d) Ramesh Dattatray Dhone, ….Respondents

21(e) Neelam Dattatray Dhone

22. The Commissioner, Municipal Corporation of City of Pune.

23. The City Engineer (Building Permissions), Municipal Corporation of City of Pune. 24. District Inspector of Land Records.

25. City Survey Officer No.1, Pune.

Ms. Shruti Tulpule a/w Ketki Gadkari, for the Petitioner.

Mr. A. P. Vanarse AGP, for the Respondent Nos. 1 to 5.

Mr. Sandeep Dinkar Paigude a/w Reshma More, for Respondent Nos.

14, 18, 19, 20 and 21 E.

Mr. A. P. Kulkarni, for Respondent Nos. 22 and 23.

CORAM : SANDEEP V. MARNE, J.

Reserved On : 15 December 2023.

Pronounced On: 3 January 2024.

Judgment:

1. By this petition, Petitioner has challenged the Order dated 25 August 2009 passed by the Minister-Revenue rejecting his Revision Application and confirming the Order dated 16 July 2009 passed by the Additional Commissioner, Pune who in turn, had confirmed the Order dated 23 April 2001 of Tehsildar, by which the land in question has been regranted in favour of the contesting Respondents. Petition thus involves the issue of validity of Order of regrant of the land in question in favour of the contesting Respondents under the provisions of the Maharashtra Pargana and Kulkarni Watans (Abolition) Act, 1950.

2. A brief factual narration as a prologue to the judgment would be necessary. The land admeasuring 4 Acres and 11 Gunthas bearing Survey No. 65/1 at Village-Parvati, Taluka-Haveli, District- Pune within the limits of Pune Municipal Corporation was originally owned by Mr. Trimbak Ganesh Deshpande and Mr. Baburao Laxman Deshpande, who sold the same to Mr. Manohar Sitram Padalkar vide registered Sale-Deed dated 22 April 1898. It is Petitioner’s case that the land was released from Watan Inam before execution of the Sale- Deed and that there is an endorsement to that effect in the Inam Register in the year 1936-37. The heirs of Manohar Sitaram Padalkar sold the land to Mr. Balaji Bhavansa Walvekar by registered Sale-Deed dated 9 September 1937, whose name came to be mutated vide Mutation Entry No. 4046 dated 26 March 1938. It is Petitioner’s case that a registered Lease-deed was executed by Balaji Bhavansa Walvekar in favour of Mr. Pandurang Gopal Gavandi for tenure of 25 years for utilization of the leased land for the business of manufacturing of bricks and allied products. On 3 July 1950, a Partnership Deed was executed between the two brothers, Pandurang Gopal Gavandi and Vishwanath Gopal Gavandi for carrying out the business of manufacturing of bricks under the name of Padma Bricks Factory.

3. On 1 May 1951, the Bombay Pargana and Kulkarni Watans (Abolition) Act, 1950 (Watans (Abolition) Act, 1950) came into effect. By Mutation Entry No. 789 dated 28 July 1952, a re