HC grants four weeks to Yusuf Pathan for the long running land claim.
Yusuf had been owning the plot since 2014 without paying a single penny even after a rejected proposal.
Costs will be imposed for further delays.
The Gujarat High Court on Monday granted former cricketer and TMC MP Yusuf Pathan four weeks' time to pursue his claim on possessing a piece of land in Vadodara under a state policy, while warning him that he will have to pay more damages for any further delay in vacating the plot.
Pathan's lawyer, Shalin Mehta, requested a division bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice DN Ray to grant two or three weeks' time as the land possession claim is being pursued under the state policy, which was brought under record.
Also Read: HC Warns Pathan For Illegal Plot In Vadodra
"We are hopeful that under the policy, we will be given (the land under question) because other cricketers are entitled under the policy," Mehta said.
The bench agreed but also issued a stern warning.
"Be mindful of the fact that the more time you take, the more damages you will have to pay. Please keep this in mind. We have no difficulty in giving you time because you have lost in one court already," said Chief Justice (CJ) Agarwal.
The CJ said that Pathan continued to occupy the land since 2014 "without paying a single penny" even though the (allotment) decision was not in his favour.
"You continued to occupy the premises for this period without paying a single penny. Even if you get it under the policy today, you will have to pay damages for that period. So, the more time you take, the more damages you will have to pay. We are conveying this to you. Damages have to be factored in," CJ Agarwal added.
Pathan, originally from Vadodara, represents the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency in West Bengal.
He had challenged a single-judge order upholding the Gujarat government's decision to reject his request for allotting 978 square metres of land belonging to the Vadodara civic body. He had claimed the land under a state policy.
Despite the state government rejecting his claim in 2024, Pathan continued to occupy the land. Following his election as the TMC MP, the Vadodara Municipal Corporation sent him a notice to vacate the land, which he challenged in court.
During an earlier hearing of the matter on June 8, the division bench had questioned how Pathan occupied public land in Vadodara without paying a single penny, even after the state government had refused the allotment proposal.
