HC slams MIDC for stalling projects, orders handover of lands to 2 firms

The Bombay High Court ordered MIDC to lease land to Bikaner Sweets and Siddhilaxmi Enclave, criticizing political interference in the delay.

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court has directed the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) to execute requisite lease agreement in respect of land parcels allotted to M/s Bikaner Sweets & Namkin NX-2 and Siddhilaxmi Enclave Pvt Ltd, and to hand over the lands to the firms. The court condemned MIDC’s action of withholding the lands as arbitrary and influenced by political interference.

HC slams MIDC for stalling projects, orders handover of lands to 2 firms

By an allotment order issued on October 1 and October 7, 2021, respectively, the MIDC had allotted lands to the two firms for development of hotels at the Trans Thane Creek (TTC) industrial area in Mahape in Navi Mumbai. However, despite receiving full payment, the MIDC inexplicably refrained from executing the requisite agreements and granting possession of the land without any valid reason.

In a meeting chaired by the then chief minister on June 1, 2023, Ganesh Naik, member of legislative assembly of the area, raised issues related to serious parking problems and, thereafter, the land development was put on hold and, instead, parking lots were ordered to be constructed on the lands. Following this, instructions were issued on July 4, 2024, under section 18 of the MIDC Act, 1961, halting the projects. Section 18 empowers the state government to issue to MIDC special directions on policy as it may think necessary for the purpose of carrying out the purposes of this Act, and the Corporation shall be bound to follow and act upon such directions.

Advocates Tushar Sonawane and Siddhi Sawant, representing the petitioners, submitted that the possession was delayed without any valid reasons, despite payment being made on time and MIDC issuing a corrigendum on April 4, 2022, confirming the allotment of the plots, which had resulted in violating their statutory and contractual rights.

The counsel for MIDC took a stand that they were bound by the directions issued on January 4, 2021, under section 18 of the MIDC Act, 1961 and the direction was issued with an aim to ensure traffic and parking safety along the service road.

Additional government pleader AI Patel submitted that a letter dated December 17, 2024, from an under-secretary, confirmed that no policy direction was issued by the state government to the MIDC under section 18 of the MIDC Act.

After examining applicability of the legal provision, a division bench of justice BP Colabawalla and justice Somasekhar Sundaresan directed the MIDC to execute the requisite agreements to lease, within six weeks, and to hand over physical possession of the respective allotted lands to Bikaner Sweets and Siddhilaxmi Enclave.

The court criticised the MIDC for stalling the possession, despite pocketing the money paid by the petitioners, without any valid reason. The bench said the instructions contemplated under section 18 are meant to be directions as regards to policy matters and not to specific projects and allotment of lands.

“If planned development can be arbitrarily interfered with, and that too at the purported behest of a local municipal body, there would be no sanctity to the process of planned development. One wonders how the MIDC felt entitled to sit on the monies received throughout this period,” the court said. Observing that the refusal was on account of political interference, the court further directed the MIDC to submit a compliance report by February 3, 2025.