Land De-Reserved By Operation Of Law Cannot Be Re-Reserved In A Subsequent Development Plan: Bombay High Court
Saksham Vaishya
25 Aug 2026 11:05 AM IST
The Bombay High Court has held that land which is dereserved from a revised Development Plan by operation of law cannot be reserved again in a subsequent Development Plan with some variation in purpose.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Ranjitsinha Raja Bhonsale and Justice M.S. Karnik was hearing a petition under Article 226 of the Constitution and Section 127 of the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning Act, 1966 (MRTP Act), seeking a declaration that the reservation for public amenities upon the subject property vide sanctioned Development Plan for Nashik Corporation has lapsed and that the said lands are released from the reservation and available to the Petitioner for development.
The land in question was reserved under the 1993 Development Plan for an Electric Sub Station. As the Respondents did not take steps to acquire the property, the Petitioners issued a purchase notice dated December 12, 2006 under Section 127 of the MRTP Act. The Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company subsequently withdrew the proposal for acquisition on the ground that the land cost was high.
The Court noted that an adjacent owner, similarly affected by the same reservation, had earlier approached the Court. The Petitioners contended that the same land could not have been again reserved after the earlier reservation had lapsed under Section 127 of the MRTP Act.
The Court referred to various precedents, such as Bhavnagar University v. Palitana Sugar Mills (P) Ltd. and Anil Dattatraya Girme And Ors. Vs. State of Maharashtra And Ors., noting:
“… land once dereserved from the Development Plan by operation of law cannot be reserved again in a revised plan with some variation.”
The Court held that the ratio of these precedents squarely applied to the present case, where the first reservation under the 1993 Development Plan had lapsed, and the same land was subsequently reserved under the 2017 Development Plan for public amenities space.
The Court accordingly held that the reservation is deemed to have lapsed, and ordered release of the land from reservation.
Case Title: Baburao Gangadhar Jadhav (Since Deceased) Through Legal Heirs v. State of Maharashtra [Writ Petition No. 8829 of 2024]
