The Supreme Court has observed that a mere entry in the immovable properties register maintained by a Municipal Corporation cannot, by itself, establish title or ownership over land. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, in a judgment authored by Justice Sandeep Mehta, set aside the judgment dated 24.04.2019 passed by the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court in Letters Patent Appeal No.369 of 2016 and restored the well-reasoned order of the learned Single Judge dated 03.03.2016. The Court directed the South Delhi Municipal Corporation to objectively consider the application of the appellants for incorporation of their plots in the layout plan of Green Park Extension Colony within 60 days by passing a speaking order. The disposition shall not be influenced or prejudiced by any observations made either by the Division Bench or in the present judgment.

The dispute centered around 1600 sq. yards of land in erstwhile village Yusuf Sarai Jat, now part of Green Park Extension Colony, New Delhi. The land was originally shown as reserved for a High School in the 1958 layout plan sanctioned by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. However, in the revised layout plan sanctioned on 30.05.1969, the reservation for the High School was deleted because the available area was only 1600 sq. yards, far short of the mandatory requirement of approximately 4000 sq. metres (roughly 4784 sq. yards). The coloniser sold the subject land to five persons through registered sale deeds dated 18.06.1975. When the Municipal Corporation attempted to interfere with possession, the owners filed civil suits which were decreed on 01.10.1988 after full contest, granting perpetual injunction restraining the Corporation from dispossessing them except in accordance with due process of law. The Corporation’s delayed appeals were dismissed, and the decrees attained finality. The land subsequently changed hands through registered sale deeds and gift deeds. When the subsequent purchasers, including appellant No.1 – Pawan Garg, applied for incorporation of their plots in the colony layout plan, the Layout Scrutiny Committee (19.05.2014) and the Standing Committee (17.07.2014) rejected the request solely on the basis of an internal entry in the Corporation’s property register.

The Supreme Court held that the civil court’s findings on ownership and possession had attained finality and the writ petition filed by the appellants was only for the limited purpose of seeking incorporation in the layout plan. The Division Bench exceeded its jurisdiction by re-adjudicating the issue of title and public purpose which had never been live before the High Court. The Court observed that except for a random entry in its property register, the Corporation never asserted title over the plots before any forum. In such circumstances, the Division Bench was not justified in rendering observations so as to virtually unsettle the decree of the civil Court passed way back in 1988 and thereby cause the title to be brought under dispute. The Court clarified that the land was validly de-reserved in 1969 and reverted to the original owners, and subsequent registered conveyances transferred valid title to the appellants and their predecessors who have been in peaceful possession for decades.

The Supreme Court accordingly allowed the appeal, restored the judgment of the learned Single Judge, and directed the South Delhi Municipal Corporation to consider the application for incorporation of the plots in the layout plan within 60 days by passing a speaking order. No costs were imposed and all pending applications were disposed of.

Case Title: Pawan Garg & Ors. Versus South Delhi Municipal Corporation
Case No.: Civil Appeal No. __ of 2026 (Arising out of SLP(C) No. 26487 of 2019)
Date of Judgment: 20 April 2026
Coram: Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta

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