2025:BHC-AS:34771 Digitally signed by IRESH IRESH MASHAL MASHAL Date:

2025.08.12

20:09:19 +0530 6-WP-8968-2018 varsha IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO. 8968 OF 2018 Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, having its office at Mumbai Pune High way Pimpri, Pune 411018 ….Petitioner Vs.

1. Chinchwad Devasthan Trust having registered office at Mangalmurti Wada, Chinchwadgaon, Pune 411 033 through its power of attorney holder Mr. Prateek Ajay Chordia, residing at Silverwood Apartment Flat No. 1, 1st floor, Mundhwa, Pune.

2. The Collector, Collector Office, Pune 411 001.

3. Deputy Director, Land Records, New Administrative Building, First Floor, Pune 411 001.

4. State of Maharashtra through the Secretary Department of Revenue and Forests,Mantralaya, Mumbai. …. Respondents Mr. Narendra Walawalkar, Senior Advocate a/w. Mr. Shrikrishna Ganbavale and Mr. Shantanu Patil i/b. for the Petitioner Mr. S.S. Patwardhan for Respondent No.1.

Ms. Sulbha Chipade, AGP for Respondent Nos. 3, 4 and 5-

State.

Mr. Amit T. Nanware-CTS-PCMC.

CORAM : GAURI GODSE, J.

RESERVED ON : 3rd APRIL 2025 PRONOUNCED ON : 12th AUGUST 2025 JUDGMENT :-

1. This petition is filed by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Corporation’), to challenge the judgment and order passed by the learned Revenue Minister of the State Government in a revision application filed by respondent no.1-Trust (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Trust’) under Section 257 of the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code(‘MLRC’).

2. The revision application before the State Government was filed by the Trust under Section 257 of the MLRC to challenge the order dated 6^th June 2017, passed by the Deputy Director of Land Records (‘DDLR’) in an appeal preferred by the Corporation under Section 247 of the MLRC. The appeal before the DDLR was preferred by the Corporation to challenge the order dated 8^th December 2014 passed by the District Superintendent of Land Records (‘District Superintendent’) in an appeal preferred by the Corporation under Section 247 of the MLRC. The Corporation had preferred the appeal before the District Superintendent to challenge the order dated 4^th August 2008, passed by the City Survey Officer. The date of the order is wrongly typed as 4^th July 2008 by the City Survey Officer; hence, the correct date is clarified in the order of DDLR. By the said order, the City Survey Officer issued directions to enter the name of the Trust as “original holder” in respect of an area admeasuring 7 Hectares 89 Ares of the land situated adjacent to survey no.1, excluding the area covered by the lake at village Bhosari. The City Survey Officer issued directions to create a property card for the said area in the name of the Trust by numbering it as CTS No. 4579. The City Survey Officer passed the said order in accordance with the directions issued by the Superintendent of Land Records on 16^th July 2008.

3. The Superintendent of Land Records had directed the City Survey Officer to allot the last city survey number for the area adjacent to survey no.1 by excluding the area covered by the lake, by holding an inquiry as contemplated under Section 122 and Section 20 (2) of the MLRC. The Corporation is aggrieved by the directions issued by the City Survey Officer to enter the name of the Trust as the original holder of CTS No. 4579 for an area admeasuring 7 Hectares 89 Ares adjacent to Survey No.1 by excluding the area covered by the lake (this area is hereinafter referred to as “the said land”).

4. For a better understanding of the controversy and for examining the rival submissions, the following dates and events would be relevant:

a) 8 ^th July 1997 : The Corporation entered into an agreement with the Trust for acquiring an area of 1,05,400 square meters of the open land situated adjacent to the lake at Survey No.1 of village Bhosari, Pimpri, District Pune. The area proposed for acquisition was described in green on the attached map. I