HUHTAMAKI INDIA LTD. Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Rule. Respondents waive service. With the consent of parties, rule made returnable forthwith and heard finally.

(2.) By the above Writ Petition, filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the Petitioner inter alia seeks an order to direct Respondent No.1 and/or Respondent No.2 to refund an amount of Rs.19,21,70,250.00, which, according to the Petitioner, is illegally exacted from it for obtaining a No Objection Certificate for sale/redevelopment of their land bearing S. No.131/1 to 5, 132/A-1/1, 132/A/1,3,4, 134/1, 2A, 4, 136/1 to 7, 137/1 to 5,7 and 8, 139/2P, 3, 4, 5,6, 140/1 to 7, 140/8B, 8C, 140/9, Village Majivade, Tal. Dist. Thane, admeasuring 54,540 square meters. After certain deductions [as more particularly mentioned in the order of demand dtd. 16/10/2023], the entire land of the Petitioner admeasures 41,472 square meters (for short "the entire land").

(3.) It is the case of the Petitioner that after the repeal of the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976 (for short "the ULC Act"), in a decision of the Full Bench of this Court in Maharashtra Chamber of Housing Industry, Mumbai & Ors. v/s. The State of Maharashtra & Anr. [2014 (6) Mh.L.J. 829], it was held that the exemption granted under Sec. 20 of the ULC Act did not abate on repeal of the said Act. Being aggrieved by this decision of the Full Bench, some of the parties approached the Hon'ble Supreme Court. At the time when the SLP was pending before the Hon'ble Supreme Court, the State Government constituted a Committee under the Chairmanship of Mr. Justice B. N. Shrikrishna (Retired), who recommended that the issue of exemption orders under Sec. 20 of the ULC Act should be closed by accepting certain payments. This recommendation was made in a Report dtd. 9/8/2018.