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Friday, May 06, 2005

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Orders reserved on mill owners' plea

Legal Correspondent

"High Court order puts at stake Rs. 10,000 crores in investment"

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has reserved ruling on a batch of appeals against a Bombay High Court interim order restraining the Mumbai Municipal Corporation from granting further approval to the development plans of textile mills on their land.

A Bench, comprising Justice N. Santosh Hegde and Justice S.B. Sinha, on Wednesday heard Solicitor-General G.E. Vahanvati on behalf of the Maharashtra Government, and senior counsel Soli Sorabjee, Arun Jaitley, K. Parasaran, T.S. Andhyarujina and Gopal Subramaniam. It said over Rs. 10,000 crores in investment was at stake.

The Maharashtra Government, Bombay Dyeing, the National Textile Mills, Ruby Mills, Hindoostan Mills and Morarjee Mills, Mafatlal Industries and the Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh had filed the appeals against the April 1 High Court order.

Their counsel said over Rs. 10,000 crores would be at stake if the impugned order was not stayed. The mills had gone ahead with the plans to develop the land, paying off dues to workers running into thousands of crores. They had taken loans from financial institutions to construct residential and commercial complexes according to approved guidelines. Mr. Vahanvati said the Bombay Action Group, on whose petition the interim order was passed, approached the Supreme Court after four years of operation of a scheme. The interim order was unwarranted. Appearing for the petitioners, senior counsel Iqbal Chhagla contended that the High Court had done nothing wrong by saying further construction would not be permitted by the Corporation or the State.

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