In Brief
IDCO, a statutory corporation, allotted land to Mesco for a steel plant on the condition that a formal lease deed would be executed. Despite taking possession in 1996 and receiving repeated reminders, Mesco failed to execute the lease deed or pay outstanding instalments over 5+ years. IDCO resumed the land and reallocated it to other industries. The High Court directed IDCO to lease the remaining land to Mesco, citing non-compliance with a three-month notice requirement. The Supreme Court held that execution of a formal lease deed is a mandatory, non-negotiable condition precedent; without it, no valid lessor-lessee relationship arises. Mesco's possession without a lease deed creates no enforceable right. The three-month notice clause applies only to existing leases, not pre-contractual phases. Statutory bodies cannot override formal legal requirements through estoppel or ratification. The Court reversed the High Court's direction and dismissed Mesco's writ petition, upholding the land resumption.
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