Not all private properties can be used by State for the community

Posted 06 Nov 2024

2 min read

In Property Owners Association v State of Maharashtra, the SC held that all private properties cannot form part of the 'material resources of the community' under Article 39(b) of the Constitution.

It over ruled Judgment in State of Karnataka v. Ranganatha Reddy (1978) and Sanjeev Coke Manufacturing Company vs. Bharat Coking Coal Ltd. and Anr. (1983) case which held that private properties can be regarded as community resources.

Key Observations

Scope of Article 39(B): Ambit of "material resource of community" must be based on the nature of the resource, the scarcity of the resource, etc.
- The Public Trust Doctrine (ensure that everyone gets equal access to all natural resources without any discrimination) can also be applied here.
Upheld Keshavananda Bharati verdict (1973): That allowed for the judicial review of the laws enacted as per Article 31C (refer to box).
Approach for Economic Policies: The judgment stressed that governments should be allowed to adapt economic policies according to changing needs, rather than imposing a fixed economic doctrine.

About Article 39(b) and Article 31C

Article 39(b) of the Directive Principles of State Policy (Part IV) mandates that the government should direct policies to ensure that “material resources of the community” are distributed to best serve public welfare.
- Material resources of the community’ may include public or private resources for producing goods or services or for producing wealth for the community.
- Private resources can be turned into material resources of the community by means such as nationalisation, acquisition, operation of law, by purchase by state and owner's donation.
Article 31C: Inserted by 25^th Constitutional Amendment, 1971, protects laws that give effect to Article 39(b) and (c) from being challenged for violating Articles 14 or 19.