Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966  (MRTP Act):

Purpose of - Held: The principal object of the MRTP Act is planned development of the State of Maharashtra by preparing development plans for regions and town planning  schemes and constitution of various authorities to achieve the said purpose - It includes the function of acquisition of land but for a very limited purpose - Acquisition of land takes place only where the land is reserved, designated or required for complete development in the view of the Planning, Development pr Appropriate Authority as the case may be.

Scheme under the Act - Whether the Act is a self contained Code - Held, Yes - MRTP Act is an Act which completely provides for various steps in relation to execution of its object, constitution of various authorities to implement  the underlying scheme of planned development, machinery for interested persons to raise their claims for adjudication under the provisions of the Act or at best to an authority referred to in the Act - Thus, the MRTP Act is a complete code in itself.

Chapter VII - Whether all the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, as amended by Land Acquisition (Amendment) Act, 1984 [Act 68 of 1984], with particular   can be read into the provisions of the MRTP Act on the principle of either legislation by reference or legislation by incorporation - Held: All the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act introduced by later amendments would not, per se, become applicable and be deemed to be part and parcel of the MRTP Act - The intent of the legislature to make the MRTP Act a self-contained Code with definite reference to required provisions of the Land Acquisition Act is clear - Unambiguous language of the provisions of the MRTP Act and the legislative intent clearly mandates that it is a case of legislation by incorporation in contradistinction to legislation by reference - Nonetheless, some of the amended provisions of the Land Acquisition Act would be applicable to the MRTP Act or read as a part thereof, with reference to the doctrine of pith and substance and harmonious application of the two statutes - The provisions introduced in the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 by Act 68 of 1984, limited to the extent of acquisition of land, payment of compensation and recourse to legal remedies provided under the said Act, can be read into an acquisition controlled by the provisions of Chapter VII of the MRTP Act but with a specific exception that the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act in so far as they provide different time frames and consequences of default thereof including lapsing of acquisition proceedings cannot be read into the MRTP Act - S. 11A of the Land Acquisition Act being one of such provisions cannot be applied to acquisitions under Chapter VII of the MRTP Act - Reading of s. 11A of the Land Acquisition Act into Chapter VII of the MRTP Act will render the substantive provisions of the MRTP Act ineffective, unworkable and may frustrate its object materially - Land Acquisition Act, 1894 - s.11A.

Land Acquisition Act, 1984 - Enactment of- Purpose - Scheme under the Act - Discussed - Held: The primary object of the Act is acquisition of land for a public purpose which may be 'planned development' or even otherwise - The Act itself is a self contained code within the framework of its  limited purpose, i.e. acquisition of land - It provides for  complete machinery for acquisition of land including the process of execution, payment of compensation as well as legal remedies in case of any grievances.

Doctrines: 

Doctrine of legislation by reference - Meaning and applicability of - Held: When there is general reference in the Act in question to some earlier Act but there is no specific mention of the provisions of the former Act, then it is clearly considered as legislation by reference - In the case of legislation by reference, the amending laws of the former Act would normally become applicable to the later Act.

Doctrine of legislation by incorporation - Meaning and applicability of - Held: When the provisions of an Act are  specifically referred and incorporated in the later statute, then those provisions alone are applicable and the amending provisions of the former Act would not become part of the later Act. This principle is generally called legislation by incorporation.

Doctrine of pith and substance and doctrine of incidental encroachment - Applicability of - Discussed - Held: Once it  is found that in pith and substance, an Act is a law on a permitted field then any incidental encroachment, even on a forbidden field, does not affect the competence of the legislature to enact that law - An incidental cause cannot override the primary cause.

Interpretation of Statutes:

Referential legislation as a tool of interpretative  application - Held: The Court, while applying referential legislation as a tool of interpretative application, should keep in mind that such interpretation should not, in any way, defeat the object and essence of principal legislation likelihood of any interference with the scheme under the principal Act would tilt against accepting such an interpretation.

Self-contained code - Held: Should be distinguished  from supplemental law.

Legislation - Legislation by reference - Held: The rule of legislation by reference is bound to have exceptions - It cannot be stated as an absolute proposition of law that wherever legislation by reference exists, subsequent amendments to the earlier law shall stand implanted into the later law without analyzing the impact of such incorporation on the object and effectuality of the later law - The later law being the principal law, its object, legislative intent and effective implementation shall always be of paramount  consideration while determining the compatibility of the amended prior law with the later law as on relevant date.

Maxims - maxim ut res magis valeat quam pereat - Held: A statute should be construed so as to make it effective and operative - Interpretation of Statutes.

The questions referred for consideration of this Constitution Bench were: 1) whether the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 (MRTP) is a self-contained Code or not, if so, to what effect and 2) whether, in any event, all the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, as amended by Land Acquisition (Amendment) Act, 1984 [Act 68 of 1984] with particular reference on Section 11A can be read into the provisions of the MRTP Act on the principle of either legislation by reference or legislation by incorporation.