Overview
- The division bench, which ruled Wednesday, struck down MMRDA demand notices and directed refunds totaling ₹731.13 crore to four lessees.
- The court named the recipients and amounts as Reliance Industries ₹646.77 crore, Sunteck Realty ₹52.80 crore, Indian Newspaper Society ₹22.63 crore, and Shree Naman Hotels ₹8.93 crore.
- The judges refused MMRDA’s request to pause the order and gave the authority 90 days to return the money.
- The bench said delays flowed from slow statutory approvals, so construction time should run from the issue of a Commencement Certificate rather than from the lease date.
- In Reliance’s case, the court noted the firm paid ₹646.77 crore under pressure while seeking occupancy in 2019 and that MMRDA later sought another ₹1,116.83 crore, findings that led the judges to call the recoveries arbitrary and coercive.