Dear Experts,
I am seeking urgent legal guidance regarding a matter of severe administrative failure, willful delay, and non-compliance by local government authorities in Maharashtra.
The matter pertains to an unauthorized mobile tower actively operating on my land at Survey No. 1200/1200A in Mauje Napane, Taluka Vaibhavwadi, District Sindhudurg. This commercial tower has been running on the strength of a No Objection Certificate (NOC) issued on August 14, 2006 (Outward No. Grapana 04/06).
However, on November 26, 2025, the Napane Gram Panchayat issued an official statutory clarification under Outward No. 61/2025-26, explicitly declaring that this 2006 NOC completely lacks the mandatory signature of the Gramsevak. The Gram Panchayat has placed it in writing that because this vital official signature is missing, the document holds absolutely no legal validity under Maharashtra government rules. Furthermore, the local body has noted that the mobile tower company has repeatedly evaded compliance and has failed to produce essential legal clearances, including mandatory Non-Agricultural (NA) land-use permissions.
Despite this clear written declaration of illegality by the parent local body, the Zilla Parishad administration has been intentionally stretching the matter and allowing the company to continue its operations. I first formally escalated this issue on January 9, 2026, by emailing Shri Ravindra Khebudkar, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Sindhudurg Zilla Parishad, attaching the Gram Panchayat's letter and requesting an immediate halt to the tower's operations. After receiving no response, I sent an urgent follow-up on February 12, 2026, carbon-copying senior state oversight bodies, including the Chief Minister’s Office and the Konkan Divisional Commissioner. Taking immediate cognizance of my grievance, the Office of the Konkan Divisional Commissioner stepped in on February 23, 2026, and issued an official order directing the ZP CEO to conduct an inquiry and execute appropriate lawful action.
However, the Zilla Parishad CEO completely ignored this directive from his superior, forcing me to file an escalation complaint with the Divisional Commissioner on April 12, 2026, regarding the total lack of progress. In direct response to my follow-up, the Office of the Konkan Divisional Commissioner issued a strict, digitally signed formal Reminder Letter (Smaranpatra) to the ZP CEO on April 29, 2026. The Subject line of this official government letter explicitly reads: "Regarding imposing a restriction on operations running on the basis of an NOC that has been declared illegal". In this reminder, the Upper Commissioner explicitly records that the Zilla Parishad has failed to take any action on my complaint so far and strictly commands the CEO to conduct the inquiry, execute lawful action, and submit an immediate compliance report. As it stands, the ZP CEO continues to maintain absolute administrative inertia, stretching the timeline to protect the unauthorized tower despite direct written mandates from both the local Gram Panchayat and the regional Divisional Commissioner.
Given this clear paper trail of administrative failure, I need your expert legal advice on the most effective and aggressive way to proceed. Since the issuing authority has officially declared the underlying 2006 NOC to be completely void and the higher regional authority has explicitly ordered a restriction on the tower's operations, the Zilla Parishad CEO's ongoing delay is a clear failure to execute his statutory public duty.
Could you please advise me on:
1. Should I immediately file a Writ of Mandamus before the Bombay High Court to force a shutdown, or is a final statutory legal notice served directly to the CEO a better immediate first step to break this deadlock?
2. How can we best petition the court for an urgent interim stay or injunction to stop the tower's active commercial operations while this matter is being legally resolved?
3. Are there any specific citations or judgments under Maharashtra Village Panchayats Act regarding unsigned/invalid NOCs that I can rely on?
Looking forward to your valuable insights.
Thank you
