In one of the longest-running housing disputes in Mumbai’s history, the Bombay High Court on Monday delivered a crushing blow to a decades-old trick used by builders and landowners to retain ownership of land forever. Justice Amit Borkar dismissed a 2014 writ petition filed by Lokmanya Pan Bazar Association Ltd. and upheld the 2013 deemed conveyance granted to Harshad Co-operative Housing Society Ltd., Sion-Chunabhatti, with costs of ₹50,000.
The 1980s Sale That Never Gave Ownership
In the early 1980s, 170 families bought flats in two buildings – Harshad Building B and Harshad Building C – on a prime plot off the Eastern Express Highway. The landowner, Lokmanya Pan Bazar Association Ltd. (a company limited by guarantee), and its appointed developer sold the flats through regular agreements that explicitly stated: “This transaction is governed by the Maharashtra Ownership Flats Act (MOFA)”.
Yet, every agreement also labelled the buyer a “Special Patron Member” of the landowner company – a meaningless title that gave residents no voting rights, no say in management, and no real membership. The fine print made it clear: the land would never be transferred.
The Vanishing Act
Once possession was handed over and full payment collected, both the landowner company and the developer walked away.
- No co-operative society was formed by the promoter (mandatory under MOFA).
- No conveyance deed was executed (mandatory within 4 months of occupation).
- Property tax, maintenance, repairs – everything was left to the residents.
For the next 35+ years, the original landowner paid nothing, maintained nothing, and never even visited the property.
Residents Take Charge
In 2002, fed up with waiting, the flat owners formed their own co-operative society – Harshad Co-operative Housing Society Ltd. The landowner knew about the registration immediately but never legally challenged it. From that day onward, the society single-handedly ran the buildings: paid municipal taxes, carried out major repairs, installed lifts, and managed day-to-day affairs.
2013: Deemed Conveyance Victory
Eleven years after forming the society, the members applied for “deemed conveyance” under Section 11 of MOFA. Notice was sent to the landowner’s registered office (still shown as Girgaum in official MCA records). The company did not appear. On 9 October 2013, the District Deputy Registrar granted deemed conveyance for the entire land beneath Buildings B and C (2,989 sq.m.).
The 40-Year Sleep Ends – Landowner Wakes Up
Only after losing the land on paper did Lokmanya Pan Bazar Association suddenly file a writ petition in 2014 claiming:
- “The buyers are our members, so MOFA doesn’t apply.”
- “ULC exemption order permanently bars conveyance.”
- “Notice was sent to the wrong address.”
The case dragged on for another 11 years.
2025: The Final Hammer
On 9 December 2025, Justice Amit Borkar rejected every argument:
- The “Special Patron Member” label was declared a deliberate fraud on the statute.
- Service at the registered office was perfect; the company itself never updated its address.
- Even the surviving ULC exemption order does not treat genuine flat buyers as “outsiders”.
- 40 years of total abandonment and zero responsibility weighed heavily against the landowner.
The writ petition was dismissed with costs. The deemed conveyance stands confirmed. The residents are now the undisputed legal owners.
One resident, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “We paid for our homes in the 1980s. We maintained them for four decades. Today, after 40 years, we finally have the paper that says this is truly ours.”
For thousands of housing societies still fighting similar battles, Monday’s judgment has become the gold standard: no builder or landowner can sleep on their rights for 40 years and then wake up to reclaim the land.
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