(file photo)

The Supreme Court on Tuesday set aside the order of the Bombay High Court, in which the Nagpur Metro Rail Corporation was ordered to hand over the possession of a plot to a private firm. 

A bench of Justice MR Shah and Justice MM Sundresh noted that the High Court should not have entertained the petition filed by the firm in view of the fact that there was "doubt" regarding the ownership of the plot.

The company had challenged in the High Court the handing over of the plot to the Nagpur Metro Rail Corporation on the basis of the allotment order dated 25 August 2015 by the District Magistrate. 

The court said that until the ownership of the plot is clarified in the pending petition, the public scheme cannot be stopped in this way.

The top court remarked that in August 2015, the District Magistrate had allotted 9,343 square meters of land to the Metro Corporation in Nagpur district.

It pointed out that initially in July 1995 the land was given on sub-lease to the company by the Maharashtra Tourism Corporation for 30 years and stipulated that the state could cancel the lease for a public purpose.

The bench said that in the year 2002, the tourism corporation canceled the lease given in July 1995, after which the firm filed a suit against the corporation. 

The court said that the High Court has committed an 'error' by terming the occupation of the land by the Metro Corporation as illegal.

Therefore, the writ petition of the original plaintiff cannot be entertained by the High Court, unless the title of the original plaintiff (firm) over the concerned plot is proved, which will be decided through the pending civil case."

Accepting the appeal of Nagpur Metro Rail Corporation Limited, the court said, "In the present circumstances, the order passed by the High Court will not be applicable."

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