- (1.) The case involved in these two appeals, with leave, seems indeed straightforward enough, but the High Court of Bombay made it, as we venture to think, unsatisfactory and in a sense against judicial propriety and decorum.
(2.) The facts which are of central importance may be stated as follows : On June 19, 1982, the Government of Maharashtra issued a draft notification under See. 3(3) of the Bombay Provincial Municipal Corporation Act, 1949 (the "Act"). The draft notification proposed the formation of what is termed as "Kalyan Corporation" (the "Corporation"). It suggested the merging of Municipal areas of Kalyan, Ambarnath, Dombivali and Ulhasnagar. Against this proposal, there were many objections and representations from persons, companies and the authorities. Amarnath and Ulhasnagar Municipal bodies and also some of the residents therein submitted their representations. They objected to the merger of their municipal areas into the Corporation. It is said that in Ulhasnagar Municipal area, Sindhies are predominant. In 1947, they were the victims of partition of the country. Being uprooted from their home land, they have since settled down at Ulhasnagar. They have formed union or federation called the All India Sindhi Panchayat Federation.. It is interested in having a separate identity for Ulhasnagar. The Federation challenged the said draft notification by a writ petition before the Bombay High Court. The writ petition was not disposed of on merits. It was permitted to be withdrawn on an assurance given by the Government. The Government gave the assurance that the representatives of the Federation would be given an opportunity of being heard before taking a final decision. As per the assurance, they were given personal hearing on their representations. The others who have filed similar representations were not heard. But their objections or representations were duly considered. Thereupon, the Government decided to exclude Ulhasnagar from the proposed Corporation. Accordingly, a notification under Sec. 3(2) of the Act was issued. The Corporation was thus constituted without Ulhasnagar. That was the only alteration made in the proposal earlier notified. All other areas indicated in the draft notification were merged in the Corporation.
(3.) The residents of Ambarnath Municipal areas were not satisfied. They were, perhaps, more worried by the exclusion of Ulhasnagar than the inclusion of their own area. They moved the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution challenging the notification issued under Sec. 3(2) of the Act. They interalia, contended that the action of the Government affording an opportunity of being heard only to the Federation and not to other objectors was contrary to Article 14. It was a hostile discrimination to hear only one of the objectors. They asserted that the establishment of the Corporation without Ulhasnagar Municipal area, having regard to the geographical contiguity was unintelligible and incomprehensible. It was arbitrary and opposed to the object of the Act. They also contended that there ought to have been a fresh draft notification after taking a decision to exclude Ulhasnagar from the proposal. With similar contentions and for the same relief, there was another writ petition before the High Court. It was filed by the National Rayon Corporation Limited which is a company located within the Municipal limits of Ambarnath.;