Mysore City Corporation has stopped construction work by the Railways since the Railways did not obtain permission of MCC for this work. It has been reported in the media that the Divisional Railway Manager has stated that according to Section 11 of the Indian Railway Act, 1989, the Railways have every right to erect buildings on their own land without having to obtain sanction of the municipal or cantonment authorities in whose areas the site may be situated. The DRM is reported to have said that since the Indian Railways Act is a Central Government Act, it overrides the local municipal as well as corporation Acts. It has also been reported that the DRM has threatened MCC with legal action.
We believe that the DRM's statements are incorrect. Firstly, Sec. 11 of the Railways Act, 1989 does not say that Railways are not bound by local planning authorities. Secondly, it is wrong to state that the Railways Act, just because it is a Central Act, overrides all State and local rules and regulations. The Constitution of India foresaw that such disputes of jurisdiction would arise between the Central government and the State governments and so clearly demarcated the jurisdiction of both in Article 246 and the Seventh Schedule which lists all the Central, State (and Concurrent) subjects. Urban development is on the State list and so Central government (and the Railways) can not usurp the power of the State government in this matter. In fact, the website of the Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India () states "In the federal structure of the Indian polity, the matters pertaining to the housing and urban development have been assigned by the Constitution of India to the State Governments. The Constitution (74th Amendment) Act have further delegated many of these functions to the urban local bodies. The constitutional and legal authority of the Govt. of India is limited only to Delhi and other Union Territories and to the subject which State Legislatures authorize the Union Parliament to legislate." So even Central Acts can not overrule the Comprehensive Development Plan and the building bylaws of local bodies.So the Railways have to follow the building bylaws of MCC and should obtain building licence and completion report from MCC.
It would be good if some lawyers or experts on the Constitution throw more light on this matter.
B.Vaikunth Shenoy, Mysore Grahakara Parishat