NEW DELHI: In a set back to Aditya Birla Group-controlled Century Textiles & Industries Ltd, SC Tuesday set aside a Bombay HC order which had directed Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai to transfer the title of a five-acre plot in the city’s Worli area to the company.
SC order paved the way to take possession of the land which was given way back in 1927 for 28 years at a yearly rent of Rupee One but no step was taken to take it back even after the lease expired in 1955.
The land was allotted for construction of 476 dwelling units and 10 shops for the poor but the land continued to be in the possession of the company for seven decades after lease expired. The company in 2006 issued legal notice requiring the civic body to execute conveyance deed to get title and ownership of the land in its favour. It also approached HC which allowed its plea in March 2022.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Prasanna B Varale, however, quashed HC order and raised questions on how the land, which was meant for poorer section could be used for commercial purposes. It said HC should not have entertained the petition by the company which was filed with a delay of six decades. It said the view taken by HC in treating the petition to be not suffering from any delay and laches cannot be sustained. The bench said that redirecting the property by the company towards commercial exploitation threatens to erode the very foundation upon which the original agreement stood.
“Such a departure from intended purpose is not only a breach of lease conditions but also a subversion of policy that animated the statutory regime. The legislation and the contract work in tandem to ensure that urban improvement aligns with the welfare of weaker segments. When land allocated under a special scheme, particularly one centred on “poorer classes” accommodation, is sought to be commercially exploited, it represents an affront to the spirit of the enactment. Rather than addressing housing inadequacies and improving urban life for those in need, the resource would be diverted to profit-making ventures that do nothing to alleviate conditions of the poor,” SC said.
The bench said the conduct of company amounts to an abuse of beneficial legislation as Bombay Improvement Trust Transfer Act, under which land was leased, was clearly intended to secure broader societal goals – better sanitation, improved living standards, and well-planned urban growth that includes and benefits marginalised communities.
“Allowing Respondent No.1 (the company) to disregard these obligations would open door to hollowing out protections established by the statute. It would set a precedent where statutory schemes designed to uplift vulnerable groups could be co-opted for commercial ends, undermining the trust that must exist between public authorities, private actors, and the most vulnerable segments of the population,” it said. SC said in essence, the arrangement is anchored on a quid pro quo: property is leased on special terms, with minimal rent & under carefully prescribed conditions, to ensure the less-privileged receive tangible benefits.
