Auroville Residents Have No Right To Be Part Of Council/Committee Formed By Foundation's Governing Body : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Monday (March 17) held that the Residents' Assembly or any individual resident of the Auroville Foundation cannot claim any right to be a part of a Committee or Council constituted by the Governing Board of the Foundation.

A bench comprising Justice Bela M Trivedi and Justice Prasana B Varale set aside the Madras High Court's order which quashed the standing order of 1st June 2022 constituting the Auroville Town Development Council (ATDC). The High Court had quashed the ATDC constitution, inter alia, on the ground that it was formed without the aid and advice of the Residents' Assembly.

Allowing the Auroville Foundation's appeal against the High Court's order, the Supreme Court observed that as per the Auroville Foundation Act or the Rules made thereunder, no legal or statutory right conferred upon the Residents' Assembly or upon any individual resident to be part of the Committee or the Council constituted by the Governing Council.

The Supreme Court held that the functions of the Residents' Assembly are confined only to advising the Governing Board in respect of the activities relating to residents of Auroville and to make recommendations as specified in Section 19 of the AF Act and not any further.

The Court observed that the High Court "thoroughly misdirected itself in misinterpreting the provisions of the AF Act and in setting aside the impugned notification containing Standing Order dated 01.06.2022."

Petition filed by disgruntled residents to hamper development of Auroville

Pronouncing the verdict, Justice Trivedi said, "Some disgruntled and discontented residents kept on filing the petitions one after the other, dragging the Foundation into unnecessary litigations. The writ petition filed by the respondent before the High Court was one of such ill-motivated petitions filed by her to abuse the process of law to hamper the development of Auroville and to cause obstructions to the smooth functioning of the Governing Board of the Foundation."

While allowing the appeal, the Court imposed a cost of Rs 50,000 on the respondent Natasha Storey which is to be deposited before the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee within two weeks. In a related development, the Supreme Court also allowed another appeal filed by the Auroville Foundation against the NGT's bar on township expansion project.

The High Court bench of the then Chief Justice Sanjay V. Gangapurwala and Mr. Justice D. Bharatha Chakravarthy delivered the judgment in March 2024, setting aside the constitution of the ATDC. The High Court observed that the residents' participation in the planning and implementation of the Master Plan was necessary.

"The performance of the functions required by the Act and all the activities relating to the residents of Auroville are vested with the Residents' Assembly under Section 19 of the Act. It can be seen that it is the Residents' Assembly that has to carry out those functions and day-to-day activities, not directly by itself, but, by aiding and advising the Governing Board," the High Court had observed.

The High Court held that the Standing Order granting power to the Governing Board to appoint any person as a member of the ATDC without the advice and consultation of the Residents' Assembly was ultra vires the Act.

R. Venkatramani, Attorney General for India; Vaibhav R Venkatesh, Adv; K. Shiva, Adv and Balaji Srinivasan, Advocate-on-Record appeared for Auroville Foundation.

Case : THE AUROVILLE FOUNDATION VS. NATASHA STOREY | DIARY NO. - 13723/2024

Citation : 2025 LiveLaw (SC) 313

Click Here To Read/Download Judgment