An apex court bench of Justice H.L. Dattu and Justice C.K. Prasad, while dismissing the petition, said the appliance at the allotment of land that was in cold storage under three chief ministers was revived when Vilasrao Deshmukh became chief minister.
The land was allotted with Deshmukh's signatures on it, the court said.
The court said all the transaction was not transparent. "YOU'RE A great film maker. There are more than you. The whole thing had to be transparent," the court said while dismissing the petition by the Mukta Arts.
After the court's judgment, Ghai said: "I respect the judiciary of my country. The Supreme Court has dismissed our appeal at the grounds that the Maharashtra government must have followed the right kind governance to go into right into a three way partnership before running a school within the Film City."
"I suppose one should be cautious while coping with the state government instead of being penalised after 10 years when heavy investment and losses are involved."
"We will discuss our future plan of action with our team of lawyers and stay up for the governmemt's reaction to the honourable Supreme Court's judgment," he added.
The apex court while pointing to the pace at which all of the process was revived and completed said that some people become blue eyed boys "swiftly" and the federal government land is given to them for a paltry sum.
The court was told that the price of the land, in line with government auditor, was worth Rs.30 crore and in line with a petitioner in the high court was greater than Rs.100 crore and it was given for only for Rs.3 crore.
As the senior counsel Mukul Rohtagi, appearing for the Mukta Arts, sought to explain the Ghai's institute as great idea, the court said that everyone" has a perfect idea. But they do not have opportunity. In the event that they have opportunity they'd build great schools".
The high court Feb 9 quashed the allotment of the land for Whistlingwoods International, a three way partnership between Mukta Arts and teh Maharashtra Film, Stage and Culture Development Corp for a state-of-the-art film institute and research centre.
Mukta Arts and the three way partnership company had challenged the high court order wherein it had directed it to go back the 15.5 acres of land back to Maharashtra Film, Stage and Culture Development Corp and the remainder 4.5 acres to be returned next year after the end of the present batch.
Rohtagi said that Mukta Arts was only excited by the institute it had set up, the court observed "somehow you were given it now you want to give protection to it".
The court said that it was not saying anything because the petition by the executive minister Deshmukh was pending before it. The court said this when Rohtagi told the court that there has been nothing clandestine within the entire transaction.
