A public interest litigation challenging the appointment of Manoj Saunik, a retired IAS officer and husband of current State Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik, as the chairman of the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority(MahaRera), will come up for hearing in the Bombay High Court on September 23.
In his PIL filed in the high court, noted RTI activist and lawyer Pravin Wategaonkar has urged the court to issue writ of quo warran to against Manoj Saunik and stay the Government resolution (GR) dated July 16, 2024 appointing him as the MahaRera chief.
The petitioner also urged the court to direct the Maharashtra government to produce all relevant documents before it and examine the procedure adopted and the material considered in the appointment,
“The MahaRera authority is constituted to protect the interest of the consumers in the real estate sector, and is expected to adjudicate the disputes between the consumers and developers. The record of Mr. Saunik while in administration is tainted with mala fides and corruption, is certainly not free from blemish,” Wategaonkar alleged.
“The Additional Chief Secretary (Housing) and convenor of the Selection committee has failed to respond to the notice issued to him,” the petition stated in his PIL.
The State Housing department, issued a GR on 16.07.2024, announced Saunik’s appointment as the MahaRera chairman. “The act lays down that the chairperson shall be appointed by the government on the recommendations of 3-member selection committee, consisting of the Chief Justice of the High Court or his nominee Judge, the Secretary, Housing Dept., and the Law secretary,” Wategaonkar said
“The law provides eligibility for Chairman of a person as `who is or has been’ in the service of the state Government and has held the post of Additional Secretary. The words `who is or has been’ have been authoritatively construed as meaning one `who is or has been’ in service `without any blemish whatsoever’,” the petitioner said.
Wategaonkar said that he had issued a notice on August 19, 2024, to the convener of the Selection Committee and Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), Housing alleging “illustrative instances of misconduct of Shri Manoj Saunik”.
