Case Note & Summary
The petitioner, a co-operative housing society registered in 1971, filed a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging the order of the Competent Authority/District Deputy Registrar dated 31st January 2017. The order was passed under Section 11 of the Maharashtra Ownership of Flats (Regulation of the Promotion of Construction, Sale, Management and Transfer) Act, 1963 (MOFA). The petitioner had applied for unilateral deemed conveyance of the society's entire property, comprising land and structures including a chawl known as Jalal House. The Competent Authority partly allowed the application, granting deemed conveyance for certain survey numbers but excluding the balance portion (the chawl on CTS No. H-405) and treating access portions (CTS Nos. H-393 and H-386) as only a joint right of way. The petitioner contended that the original owner, Mohsinbhai Hasanali, had agreed to sell the entire property to the developer, M/s. Radheshyam Constructions, by an Agreement and Supplementary Agreement dated 16th September 1970, and that the developer, in turn, had entered into an Articles of Agreement for Sale with the chief promoter of the proposed society on 5th December 1970, agreeing to construct a building and convey the entire property to the society. The petitioner argued that these documents formed a continuous chain of transactions covering the whole property without excluding the chawl or access areas. The matter was heard by the Bombay High Court sitting in its ordinary original civil jurisdiction. The judgment text provided is incomplete and does not include the court's analysis, reasoning, or final decision.
Issue of Consideration
Whether the Competent Authority was correct in partially allowing the application for unilateral deemed conveyance under Section 11(3) of MOFA and excluding the balance portion (chawl) and access portions from the conveyance, given the terms of the Agreement, Supplementary Agreement, and Articles of Agreement for Sale.
Law Points
- Section 11 of Maharashtra Ownership Flats Act
- 1963 allows unilateral deemed conveyance
- Agreements and supplementary agreements together constitute entire transaction
- AFS with chief promoter obligates conveyance of entire property
- Competent Authority under Section 5A has jurisdiction
Case Details
2026 LawText (BOM) (07) 217
Writ Petition No. 1435 of 2017
Dr. Sanjay Jain, Mr. Nishant Sasidharan, Mr. Kalpesh Mehta, Ms. Sandhya Jain, Mr. Vasim Shaikh i/b M/s. Pravin Mehta & Mithi & Company for Petitioner; Mr. S. B. Gore, AGP for Respondent no. 1; Mr. Vivek Kantawala, Mr. Vivek M. Sharma i/b M/s. Vivek Kantawala & Company for Respondent nos. 3 and 4
Girnar (Santacruz) Co-operative Housing Society Limited
1. District Deputy Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Mumbai City (3); 2. Radheshyam Constructions; 3. Hanifa Turab Aarsiwala; 4. Ruksana Yusuf Harianawala
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Nature of Litigation
Writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging an order of the Competent Authority under the Maharashtra Ownership of Flats Act, 1963 that granted only partial unilateral deemed conveyance.
Remedy Sought
The petitioner sought a certificate of unilateral deemed conveyance in respect of the entire property, including the balance portion (the chawl on CTS No. H-405) and the access portions (CTS Nos. H-393 and H-386), rather than the partial grant.
Filing Reason
The Competent Authority, by its order dated 31st January 2017, declined to grant deemed conveyance for the remaining portion of the property, including a chawl and access areas, while granting deemed conveyance for a part of the property.
Previous Decisions
The Competent Authority partially allowed Application No. 75 of 2016 on 31st January 2017, granting a certificate of unilateral deemed conveyance only for CTS Nos. H-394, H-403 and H-404, excluding the balance portion and granting only a joint right of way for the access portion instead of conveyance.
Issues
Whether the Competent Authority was justified in excluding the Balance Portion (chawl) and Access Portion from the certificate of deemed conveyance under Section 11(3) of MOFA, given the terms of the Agreement, Supplementary Agreement, and Articles of Agreement for Sale.
Submissions/Arguments
The project is governed by MOFA, and the developer derived rights in the entire property under the Agreement dated 16th September 1970 read with the Supplementary Agreement.
The AFS dated 5th December 1970 expressly agreed to convey the entire property to the Society, forming part of a composite transaction.
The Supplementary Agreement merely supplemented the principal Agreement by incorporating consideration for the incomplete structure and did not curtail or modify the subject matter of the transaction.
Read together, the Agreement, Supplementary Agreement, and AFS constitute a continuous chain of transactions that cover the entire property without excluding the chawl or access portions.
Judgment Excerpts
The Petitioner, a co-operative housing society, challenges the order dated 31st January 2017 passed by the Competent Authority / District Deputy Registrar, Co-operative Societies, Mumbai City, under Section 11 of the Maharashtra Ownership of Flats (Regulation of the Promotion of Construction, Sale, Management and Transfer) Act, 1963.
by the AFS dated 5th December 1970 executed with the Chief Promoter of the proposed Petitioner Society, Respondent No. 2 expressly agreed to construct the building and convey the entire property in favour of the Society.
The Competent Authority, however, declined to grant deemed conveyance in respect of the remaining portion of the property, including the chawl known as “Jalal House” standing on CTS No. H-405 admeasuring approximately 388 square metres.
Dr. Jain contends that none of these documents reserve or exclude either the existing chawl standing on CTS No. H-405, the land beneath it, or the portions bearing CTS Nos. H-393 and H-386.
Procedural History
The Petitioner Society was registered on 2nd January 1971 under the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960. No conveyance of the property was executed. The Petitioner filed Application No. 75 of 2016 under Section 11(3) of MOFA before the Competent Authority seeking a certificate of unilateral deemed conveyance. By order dated 31st January 2017, the Competent Authority partly allowed the application, granting deemed conveyance for a portion of the property but excluding the Balance Portion and Access Portion. The Petitioner then filed Writ Petition No. 1435 of 2017 under Article 226 challenging that order. During the pendency of the writ petition, a Deed of Unilateral (Deemed) Conveyance dated 6th February 2025 was executed and registered in favour of the Petitioner for the portion covered by the certificate.
Acts & Sections
- Constitution of India: Article 226
- Maharashtra Ownership of Flats (Regulation of the Promotion of Construction, Sale, Management and Transfer) Act, 1963: Section 11, Section 5A, Section 11(3)
- Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960:
