The Mira-Bhayander Municipal Corporation has cancelled the construction permission granted to Seven Eleven, a company linked to BJP MLA Narendra Mehta, amid a long-running dispute over land in Navghar, Bhayander. The civic action came days after Mehta said the company would relinquish possession of the disputed property following an appeal for intervention to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The cancellation was reported on Wednesday, while additional tehsildar Nilesh Gaund separately allowed a petition filed by 81-year-old Asgarali Vohra and ruled against Seven Eleven and other respondents. The order is expected to enable Vohra’s name to be entered in the land records for the property, which is currently in Seven Eleven’s possession and had been enclosed with metal sheets.
Vohra has alleged that Mehta and Swayam Builders illegally encroached on the land. He has pursued the dispute for about 15 years. According to the report, Vohra approached Modi on September 8, describing him as his childhood friend from B N School in Vadnagar, Gujarat, and sought his intervention in the matter.
Following that interaction, Mehta announced that he would surrender possession of the property and withdraw a complaint filed against Vohra. The latest municipal decision removes the construction permission issued to Seven Eleven, adding a development-control consequence to the ongoing dispute over ownership and possession.
Mehta, in a statement issued on Wednesday, denied that he or his company had cheated anyone. He said the disputed land had been sold to Vohra in 1989 by Renol Lobo and five others, who later sold the property to Swayam Builders in 2011. Mehta further said Seven Eleven had acquired the property through duly registered transactions from Joseph Fernandes and Mukesh Parekh.
Mehta said the company had decided to return the land to Mukesh Parekh and Mervin Fernandes after the dispute arose. He maintained that surrendering possession and cancelling the transaction was intended to resolve the dispute and did not amount to an admission of wrongdoing.
The matter now involves three linked administrative questions: the status of the construction permission, the possession of the Navghar property and the entry of the claimant’s name in official land records. The tehsildar’s order and the municipal cancellation represent separate steps by the revenue and civic authorities. Further action will determine how the land records and physical possession are handled after the reported decision.
