JOSEPH BAIN D SOUZA Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition has been filed by three citizens of Mumbai in public interest. The petition seeks to challenge the legality of Regulation No.33(7) of the Development Control Regulations, 1991 for the city of Mumbai, as amended in the year 1999, to the extent it provides amongst others that the buildings owned by private landlords in the island area of the city and covered for reconstruction thereunder are permitted Floor Space Index (FSI) of 2.5 or the FSI required for rehabilitation of existing tenants plus incentive FSI (as specified in Appendix III to the Regulations) whichever is more. The Petitioners have raised various grounds and invoked Article 14 of the Constitution of India for this purpose.

(2.) The three Petitioners are public spirited citizens. The 1st Petitioner is a former Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai, who is also a former Chief Secretary of the State of Maharashtra. The 2nd Petitioner has been a member of various committees concerning urban development. The 3rd Petitioner is a Civil Engineer by profession and for quite many years was an Executive Committee Member of the Bombay Metropolitan Authority. He was also a member of the Slum Rehabilitation Committee constituted by the State of Maharashtra.

(3.) Respondent No.1 to this petition is the State of Maharashtra through the Secretary, Urban Development Department. Respondent No.2 is the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, which is the Planning Authority for the city of Mumbai under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 whereunder these Regulations are framed. Respondent No.3 is a statutory authority constituted under the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Act, 1976. It is an Act with a comprehensive approach towards the problem of housing development including repair and reconstruction of the dilapidated buildings in the city. Respondent No.4 is a former Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai whose report has, amongst others, led to the amendments to the D.C. Regulations in the year 1999.