GIRISH MANGALAL MITRA Vs. URBAN LAND CEILING TRIBUNAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present petition has been filed by the petitioners Girish Mangalal Mitra and Nitinbhai Chhotubhai Desai through their power-of-attorney holder Haribhai Bhimbhai Naik, seeking protection in respect of the possession of their lands bearing Survey Nos.534, 535, 536 and 537/1 of Village Jambuva, District Vadodara and seeking direction against the respondents to treat the entire ULC proceedings as abated in view of the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Repeal Act, 1999 (hereinafter referred to as "the Repeal Act").

(2.) As per the case of the petitioners, they had jointly purchased the lands bearing Survey Nos.534, 535, 536 and 537/1 of the Village Jambuva, District Vadodara. On coming into force the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1999 (hereinafter referred to as "the ULC Act"), the petitioners had filled in the Form No.1 under Section 6(1) of the said Act and also put up a Scheme under Section 21 of the said Act for the purpose of constructing residential units for the weaker section of the Society. The competent authority after processing the form declared 12057 sq. mtrs., of the land, out of the said lands, as excess vacant land vide the order dated 12.8.1983 (Annexure-A). Being aggrieved by the said order, the petitioners had preferred an appeal being No.244/1983 before the ULC Tribunal, who vide the order dated 30.1.1988 dismissed the said appeal (Annexure-B).

(3.) It is further case of the petitioners that the competent authority vide the order dated 9.8.1979 (Annexure-C) had rejected their application under Section 21 of the said Act for putting up construction of the residential units for the weaker section of the society on the ground that the scheme was not in consonance with the master plan. The petitioners being aggrieved by the said order had preferred an appeal before the ULC Tribunal, however, the said appeal also came to be dismissed by the Tribunal vide the order dated 21.5.1980 (Annexure-D). In the meanwhile, the lands in question were covered under residential zone in the master plan, and therefore, the petitioners again gave an application to the competent authority on 27.9.1980 for reconsideration of their application made under Section 21 of the Act. According to the petitioners, they had kept on sending reminders to the competent authority to reconsider the said application, however, no decision was taken by the respondent authority. The petitioners thereafter filed the Special Civil Application No.2377/1988, however, the same was also rejected by the High Court. It is also the case of the petitioners that the possession of the lands in question declared as excess vacant lands was not taken over from the petitioners, and therefore, on the ULC Act having been repealed by the ULC Repeal Act, the entire proceedings had stood abated, and therefore, the respondent authority could not take the possession of the said lands. Apprehending that the possession would be disturbed, the petitioners had filed the present petition.