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Madras High Court· 21 September 2026

Can an administrative circular enlarge the monetary alternative beyond the class of developments to which the Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019 make it available?

K.Alamelu v. The State of Tamil Nadu
WP(MD).26931/2026 · 2026:MHC:3903 · WP(MD) NO. 26931 of 2026
Coram: Justice L.Victoria Gowri
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Answer

An administrative circular cannot enlarge the monetary alternative beyond the class of developments to which the Rules make it available.

No. An administrative circular cannot enlarge the monetary alternative beyond the class of developments to which the Rules make it available. Administrative instructions may guide delegation, valuation and implementation, but they cannot override the express prohibition applicable above 10,000 square metres. (¶36)

Headnote

Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019 — r.41(1) — r.47(6) — Constitution of India — Art.300-A — Open space to be reserved (OSR) — Guideline value in lieu — Aggregation of adjoining extents — Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019 — r.41(1) — OSR land — Fragmented layouts read together — Held: The alternative of paying guideline value is available only where the development genuinely falls within the band between 3,000 and 10,000 square metres, and not where one integrated development is divided into successive paper layouts. (¶30) Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019 — r.47(6) — Composite development — Connecting factors must be identified — Held further: Common ownership alone does not authorise aggregation; the authority must identify contiguity, common acquisition, unity of access or design, temporal proximity or a sequence revealing fragmentation before treating two parcels as one development. (¶31, 32) Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019 — r.41(1)(c) — Administrative instructions — Monetary alternative not enlarged — Held further: Administrative instructions may guide delegation, valuation and implementation, but cannot enlarge the monetary alternative beyond the class of developments to which the Rules make it available. (¶36) Constitution of India — Art.300-A — Right to property — Statutory condition of development permission — Held further: Open space required to be reserved by duly framed statutory Rules is a lawful condition of development permission and not deprivation of property without authority of law. Writ petition dismissed. (¶41, 47)

Headnote

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In the Court's own words
Paragraph 36The circular dated 07.03.2019 and the proceedings dated 25.04.2023 and 24.09.2024 cannot carry the petitioner's case further. Administrative instructions may guide delegation, valuation and implementation, but they cannot enlarge the monetary alternative beyond the class of developments to which the Rules make it available. Nor can they override the express prohibition applicable above 10,000 square metres. Natural justice:
Acts & Sections
r.41(1) Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019r.47(6) Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019Art.300-A Constitution of IndiaArt.14 Constitution of India

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Also decided in this judgment
Is the alternative of paying guideline value under rule 41(1) of the Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019 available where one integrated development is divided into successive layouts?Does common ownership of two parcels by itself authorise a planning authority to aggregate them into one development?Is open space reservation required by duly framed statutory Rules deprivation of property without authority of law under Article 300-A of the Constitution of India?
Plain-language answer prepared by the LexStreak Editorial Desk — verify against the judgment. Source: Madras High Court. Corrections