Sen, J. - (1.) By S. 127, Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 enacts:"127. If any land reserved, allotted or designated for any purpose specified in any plan under this Act is not acquired by agreement within ten years from the date on which a final regional plan, or final development plan comes into force or if proceedings for the acquisition of such land under this Act or under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, are not commenced within such period, the owner or any person interested in the land may serve notice on the Planning Authority, Development Authority or as the case may be, Appropriate Authority to that effect; and if within six months from the date of the service of such notice, the land is not acquired or no steps as aforesaid are commenced for its acquisition, the reservation, allotment or designation shall be deemed to have lapsed, and thereupon the land shall be deemed to be released from such reservation, allotment or designation and shall become available to the owner for the purpose of development or otherwise, permissible in the case of adjacent land under the relevant plan."
(2.) The short point involved in this appeal by special leave from a judgment of a Division Bench of the Bombay High Court dt. June 18 1986, is whether the period of six months specified in S. 127 of the Act is to be reckoned from the date of service of the purchase notice dt. July 1, 1977 by the owner on the Planning Authority i.e. the Municipal Corporation. of Greater Bombay here, or the date on which the requisite information of particulars furnished by the owner.
(3.) The late Dr. Eruchshaw Jamshedji Hakim was the former owner of a double-storeyed building situate on land admeasuring 3645.26 square metres bearing the cadastral survey No. 176 of Tardeo, Bombay known as Dr. Hakimwadi. The property is located at the junction of Falkland Road and Eruchshaw Hakim Road. It consists of several structures housing 24 small-scale industries, 13 shops on the ground floor and 26 residential tenements on the first floor, facing the Falkland Road. On the rear side of this building, there are several structures housing about 24 small-scale industries. The said Dr. Eruchshaw Jamshedji Hakim created a trust in respect of the properties and respondents 6-9 i.e. respondents 4-7 in the High Court, herein described as such are the present trustees appointed under the deed. The Planning Authority published a draft Development Plan in respect of 'D' ward where the property in dispute is situate. In the Development Plan the property of Dr. Eruchshaw Jamshedji Hakim was reserved for a recreation ground. The Development Plan was finalised and sanctioned by the State Government on Jan. 6, 1977. The final development scheme came into effect from Feb. 7, 1967 and thereunder the land was again reserved for recreation ground. No action having been taken for acquisition of the land until Jan. 1, 1977, the owners thereof i.e. the trustees served a purchase notice dt. July 1, 1977 on the Commissioner for Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay either to acquire the same or release it from acquisition, and the same was received on July 4, 1977. On July 28, 1977 the Corporation's Executive Engineer wrote to respondents 4-7 and asked for information regarding the ownership of the land and the particulars of the tenants thereof. The letter stated that the relevant date under S. 127 of the Act would be the date upon which this information was received. The trustees for the time being the landlords of the property known as Hakimwadi by their lawyer's letter dt. Aug. 3, 1977 conveyed that the date of six months stipulated by S. 127 of the Act has to be computed from the date of the receipt from them of the information required. Further, they stated that as the Planning Authority for Greater Bombay was the Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay, it had access to all the relevant records including the records pertaining to cadastral survey No. 176. It was also pointed out that the Corporation had been assessing them to property tax in respect of the said property and issuing bills and receipts, therefor and could not now question their title to ownership of the property.;