Mumbai, Feb 26: In a landmark judgment that brings a half-century-old legal battle to a close, the Bombay High Court has dismissed the Maharashtra Government’s claim over 193 acres of prime land in Thane’s Manpada area. The court ruled that the State failed to legally acquire the land as a “private forest” in 1975 due to fundamental procedural blunders.
A bench of Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Ashwin Bhobe upheld the rights of the landowner, M/s D. Dahyabhai and Co. Pvt. Ltd., and directed the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) to release statutory compensation in the form of Development Rights Certificates (DRC/TDR) within 21 days. The judgment was passed on February 20 but was made available late Wednesday night.
The HC dismissed the petition filed by the State challenging the orders of the Maharashtra Revenue Tribunal (MRT) and the Sub-Divisional Officer refusing to treat the entire land at Chitalsar-Manpada as private forest under the Maharashtra Private Forests (Acquisition) Act, 1975.
Acquisition notice declared void
The dispute dates back to 1975, when the government proposed acquisition of more than 217 acres owned by D. Dahyabhai & Co. Pvt. Ltd. for forest purposes. The State claimed that a notice issued on August 29, 1975, under the Indian Forest Act vested the land with the Forest Department and formed part of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
The bench agreed with the contentions raised by Cherag Balsara, counsel for the original owners, that the notice was not served on the company but was served upon “D. Dayabhai.”
The judges found serious procedural lapses in the acquisition process. The court held that the State’s original notice was “void ab initio” (void from the beginning). The notice was signed by a “Jungle Rakshak” (Forest Guard), who lacked the legal authority to issue such orders, and was addressed to “D. Dahyabhai and Company,” a partnership firm, rather than the actual owner, a private limited company — M/s D. Dahyabhai and Company Private Limited.
“The non-service of the notice on the original landowner is apparent and fatal... The contention of the State that the owner’s subsequent reaction indicated service is a contention in desperation, a result of surmises and conjectures,” the bench observed in its detailed 373-page judgment.
Rejecting the State’s argument that subsequent correspondence by the landowner implied knowledge of acquisition, the court said the contention was “an attempt to take advantage” based on presumptions.
Compensation and constitutional protection
While the Forest Department claimed the land was part of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), the court observed that the State had been in “deep slumber” for decades. Meanwhile, the land had been integrated into Thane’s Development Plan since 1999 for public projects, including roads, a bus depot and the ongoing twin-tunnel project.
TMC counsel Ram Apte informed the court that it has already taken possession of over 100 acres for “Park Reservation No. 4.”
The court ruled that refusing to compensate the owner while utilising the land violated Article 300A of the Constitution, which protects the right to property.
The court dismissed the State's petition and allowed the landowner’s petition.
To balance environmental concerns, the court noted TMC's commitment to maintaining the “natural greenery” of the park.
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The judges emphasised that ministerial acts like revenue entries cannot replace legal acquisition: “Mutation entries are ministerial in nature and cannot perfect an acquisition that lacks the statutory predicates. They neither create title in the State nor divest title from the private owner.”
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