The Bombay High Court has issued a show cause notice to the Commissioner of Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) for acting in defiance of a judicial stay order, following a contempt petition filed by Grandbuild Land Developers LLP. The court expressed deep concern over the municipal authorities’ conduct in prioritising the direction of a local MLA over a binding division bench directive.
The dispute arose when the developer sought to construct residential towers and a primary school on reserved land in Bhayandar. After the BJP MLA Narendra Mehta requested alterations to the sanctioned project plans, MBMC issued show-cause notices to the developer based on the MLA’s letter. The developer challenged these notices before the High Court, which on April 27 expressly restrained MBMC from taking any adverse action against the project.
Despite the clear stay order, MBMC officials proceeded to issue a stop-work notice on May 4. The notice was approved by Commissioner Radhabinod Sharma, who directly cited the MLA’s letter as the basis for the decision. A second stop-work notice was issued on June 3, prompting the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) to freeze the project’s accounts and issue its own show-cause notice on July 21.
In response, the developer filed a contempt of court petition before the Bombay High Court. Senior Advocate Birendra Saraf, representing the developer, argued that the municipal authorities had displayed blatant disregard for judicial orders by acting on the MLA’s directive while ignoring the court’s stay.
During the hearing, a division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ravindra V Ghuge and Justice Gautam A Ankhad expressed strong disapproval of the officials’ conduct. The Bench orally reprimanded the MBMC Commissioner, questioning whether he considered an MLA’s instruction to be superior to a division bench order. The court stated, “What prompted you to obey an MLA to disobey a division bench order? You have shocked us by your behaviour.”
The Commissioner tendered an oral apology during the proceedings, claiming ignorance of the stay order at the relevant time. He assured the Bench that the adverse notices issued by MBMC would be withdrawn. Acting on this assurance and at the request of Senior Advocate Saraf, the court deferred initiating strict contempt proceedings.
Instead, the High Court issued a simple show cause notice directing the Commissioner to explain his actions on affidavit. The court also ordered MBMC to inform MahaRERA within one week about the withdrawal of its notices against the developer. The Bench emphasized that no authority, including elected representatives, is permitted to obstruct or override judicial directives.
The court’s observations underscore the principle that executive functionaries must comply with judicial orders irrespective of external pressures. The matter remains pending for the Commissioner’s response to the show cause notice, with further action contingent on his explanation and compliance with the directive to notify MahaRERA.