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CIDCO used to allot plots to citizens and society for construction of residential dwelling units and it was also building multi storey building consisting of several apartments and used to sell them. CIDCO used to develop commercial and shopping centres. In 1998-99 CIDCO started negotiating with the Municipal Corporation of Aurangabad for taking over land in New Aurangabad area. Proclamations were issued in the newspapers inviting tenders for disposal of bulk land from different Survey Numbers, more particularly from Survey Nos. 23 and 24 of Garkheda Village in Sector "B". The total land in these two Survey Numbers admeasured 19.53 Hectares. The land owners were given 2.59 Hectares by negotiations and balance 16.94 Hectares became the property of CIDCO, which was sought to be disposed of by bulk sale. It is this proposal of bulk sale by CIDCO, which was assailed by filing a writ petition purported to be one in public interest, essentially challenging the procedure adopted for disposal of the land. After filing of the writ petition in May, 1999, the High Court passed an interim order in July, 1999, directing the CIDCO, not to proceed further with acceptance of the tenders in respect of the bulk sale. After the initial application that was filed, several other applications were filed, challenging the alleged disposal of land made by CIDCO and ultimately the High Court by the impugned Judgment, came to the conclusion that the action of CIDCO in the matter of disposal of land by bulk plots is against the public interest and the so-called allotment of land in Sectors N-2 and N-4, consisting of Survey Numbers 23, 24 and 70 is null and void, as the draft development plan has not been approved by the State Government, as required under Section 115 of the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act. Accordingly, those allotments were cancelled. The High Court also held that the proclamations issued for disposal of land are illegal and would stand cancelled. Individual allotments made in favour of respondent Nos. 5, 8, 9, 10 and 15 also were annulled and the Administrator was directed to take immediate possession of the respective lots, including the structure and buildings standing thereon. It was further ordered that as and when the Government of Maharashtra approves the Draft Development Plan, then the land earmarked for residential purposes could be disposed of by CIDCO by inviting public tenders and by drawing lots. There were also certain other directions in the impugned judgment.

The troubled part of story, with which we are concerned, has its genesis in certain events seated around the year 1998-99. Two significant events occurred in that period of time. Out of several acres of land acquired by CIDCO for developing the township of New Aurangabad, 120 housing societies had come into existence over 136 plots and some 39 societies were relocated in accordance with the developed scheme of CIDCO. What had remained was 3.3% of land earmarked as 'developable land'-to be developed in accordance with development scheme to be sanctioned by the State Government which would obviously depend inter alia on the relevant factors to be assigned weight in the light of the development which had taken place till then and keeping in view the needs of the population already accommodated in vicinity and/or the township already emerged and yet aspiring for still better quality of life and better fulfillment of its needs in future consistently with the needs of modern living standards. CIDCO, which was till then engaged in allotting plots to citizens or societies for construction of residential dwellings and building up multi-storey buildings catering to small and medium sized apartment requirements of families and selling them was yet to pass on and enter into the three facet of its developmental activities, i.e. developing commercial and shopping centres so as to cater to the needs of the individuals and families settled in the township. Left with 3.3% of developable land only it dawned upon CIDCO that insofar as the notified area is concerned its developmental activities were nearing their end and CIDCO would be better advised to hand over the township to Aurangabad Municipal Corporation to be looked after in accordance with the municipal law governing it. Suddenly CIDCO dropped the idea of developing the township further in accordance with the development plan which was yet to be sanctioned by the State Government and thought that it would be profitable to hold bulk sales of remaining land and earn a lot of money therefrom and thereby enrich itself. We can understand an individual being overpowered by greed; however, here what the High Court notices is greed of an institution-an institution, the primary object whereof is not solely to earn money but to serve the people through activities in tune with the avowed objects with which it has been found and as set out in the earlier part of this judgment. However, as the several findings arrived at by the High Court and noticed shortly hereinafter would show the greed was implanted into the institution by builders who had an eye over the left-over developable land so as to grab the same by prevailing over CIDCO and manipulate allotment to their own commercial advantage. Lest we should digress and drift away, we revert back to notice yet another event. In the year 1998, Section 80-1B of the Indian Income Tax Act, 1961 was amended by Parliament whereby payment of income tax was exempted on income derived from the housing projects commenced and completed between 1.10.1998 and 31.3.2001. The object of amendment was to give a boost to house building activity in big cities. Another requirement of the exemption was that the project claiming benefit of the exemption ought to be on a piece of land with a minimum area of one acre and the residential units shall not exceed 1500 sq. ft. A sense of hurry is writ large on the movements of CIDCO displaying an anxiety to dispose of the land by bulk sale and earn money before the proposal for handing over the township to Municipal Corporation could materialize. Advertisements were inserted in the newspapers inviting tenders for disposal of bulk land out of survey Nos. 23 and 24 of Garkheda village in 'B' sector, i.e. the land situated on the south of Jalna Road, wherein was included 19.53 hectares of land forming part of the survey Nos. 23 and 24. Out of this area, 2.59 hectares area of land was parted with in favour of some land owners through negotiations. 16.94 hectares area of land was still available.

Now, we take a quick note of some out of the several infirmities and vitiating factors found by the High Court touching the allotment of land to Holiday Resorts. The tender submitted by Ajmera in February 1999 which was for plot No. A only seeking allotment to a proposed private limited company which was yet to come in existence and yet to be named even, was cancelled by CIDCO. The process of allotment had originated by inviting tenders. On 20.4.1999, Ajmera submitted a letter showing his interest in allotment of plots No. A and D @ Rs. 1300 per sq. meter. This proposal by Ajmera was in a tender and certainly not accompanied by any earnest money deposit. The EMD submitted alongwith his tender in February 1999 was for one plot and that too had been directed to be refunded. It had no relevance nor adequacy to act as EMD for the offer dated 20.4.1999. CIDCO's response to Ajmera's proposal was in the negative grounded on the minimum rate acceptable by CIDCO being of Rs. 1500 per sq. meter. Now on 1.5.1999, Mrs. Aruna Patil stepped in joining Ajmera and informing that they were interested in all the four plots i.e. plot Nos. A, B, C and D. Needless to say this proposal is neither a tender nor accompanied by any EMD. We have already noticed the Managing Director's decision dated 24.6.1999 in favour of allotment of plots No. A and B to Ajmera but the decision preceded by allotment letter dated 21.6.1999 by Administrator, CIDCO in favour of Holiday Resorts for plots No. A and B. On the same day, Holiday Resorts submitted its Certificate of Incorporation and Memorandum of Association to CIDCO projecting as if this was the private limited company in the mind of Ajmera when he had submitted his tender in February 1999. Even in the affidavit filed in the High Court, as late as on .30.8.2000, Ajmera, impleaded as respondent No. 10 in the writ petition, does not indicate how and in what manner he was connected or associated with Holiday Resorts, a private limited company. The High Court has noted it as a 'mystery' the failure on the part of the record of CIDCO to reveal as to how and under what circumstances on 21.6.1999 the Administrator, CIDCO issued letter of allotment in favour of Aurangabad Holiday Resorts Pvt. Ltd. touching plots No. A and B though Ajmera had not at all till then revealed the name and particulars of M/s. Ajmera Holiday Resorts Pvt. Ltd. In the opinion of the High Court the issuance of letter of allotment in the name of such company was most uncalled for. There was some ghost-play indeed inasmuch as the learned Judges of the High Court meticulously compared the signatures of Ajmera appearing at various places in the numerous letters addressed to CIDCO purportedly by him and found such variations in the signatures that they were doubtful if the letter dated 15.6.1999 was at all signed by Ajmera.

There is yet another angle of looking at the propriety of the questioned bulk sale of land by CIDCO and the manner in which it was done. The land acquired and entrusted to CIDCO cannot just be permitted to be parted with guided by the sole consideration of money-making. CIDCO is not a commercial concern whose performance is to be assessed by the amount it earns. Its performance would be better assessed by finding out the number of needy persons who have been able to secure shelter through CIDCO and by the beauty of township and quality of life for people achieved by CIDCO through its planned development schemes. So long as such objectives are fulfilled CIDCO's operation on 'No-profit-No Loss' basis cannot be found fault with. There should have been no hurry on the part of CIDCO in disposing of the balance land and that too guided by the sole consideration of earning more money. Even that object the CIDCO has not been able to achieve for at the end it has parted with land at a price less than Rs. 1500 per square meter- the reserved price. Even if a sale of left-over land was a felt-necessity it should have satisfied at least two conditions: (i) a well-considered decision at the highest level; and (ii) a sale by public auction or by tenders after giving a more wide publicity than what was done so as to attract a larger number of bidders.