Mumbai: The Bombay high court recently dismissed a public interest litigation challenging the appointment of veteran bureaucrat Manoj Saunik as chairman of the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority ( MahaRera ) in place of Ajoy Mehta, whose tenure ended on Sept 20. The high court order is being viewed as a major relief for former chief secretary Saunik, an IAS officer of the 1987 batch. Petitioner Pravin Wategaonkar confirmed to TOI that his PIL has been dismissed by a bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhaya and Justice Amit Borkar.
"I am waiting for the copy of the order. Once I received a certified copy, I will move the Supreme Court," Wategaonkar said. A Thane-based RTI activist, Wategaonkar had served a legal notice to CM Eknath Shinde and housing secretary Valsa Nair, saying the govt resolution of July 16, 2024 to provide for appointment of Saunik as chairman of MahaRera should be quashed on the ground that it is bad in law.
"Please take immediate steps for quashing the government resolution appointing Saunik...
since he has zero regard for application of laws as evident from his conduct as the then additional chief secretary, public works department," Wategaonkar said in his notice. On the recommendation of a high-level committee, the state govt on July 17 issued an order appointing Saunik as head of MahaRera. Wategaonkar had raised the issue of alleged misconduct by Saunik, saying in his tenure as additional chief secretary, public works, he had g.