PANAJI
The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Goa government and planning authorities in a dispute over a property in Vasco, directing all parties to maintain status quo on possession and construction for four weeks.
The notice, returnable in four weeks, is issued in a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by social activist Swapnesh Sherlekar, challenging the order of the High Court of Bombay at Goa that dismissed his plea regarding the alleged illegal conversion of a property for commercial use.
The Bench of the apex court has sought responses from the State, the Town and Country Planning Department, the Mormugao Municipal Council, the Mormugao Planning and Development Authority and other respondents.
In the interim, the court has asked the respondents to maintain the status quo with regard to the possession and construction of the property in dispute.
The High Court Division Bench of Justice M S Karnik and Justice Nivedita Mehta declined to interfere with actions taken by planning and municipal authorities concerning the property. The High Court also dealt with connected civil applications filed by other parties, including members associated with the Ramodaya Co-operative Housing Society Ltd. and individual applicants who sought to intervene in the dispute.
Sherlekar had approached the High Court challenging decisions involving the State and local planning bodies, including the Chief Town Planner (Land Use) and the municipal authorities in Mormugao. The High Court, after the hearing, dismissed the writ petition, effectively allowing the impugned actions relating to the property to stand.
