The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) has proposed allotting a disputed 978 square-metre plot adjacent to former cricketer and Member of Parliament Yusuf Pathan's family home in the Tandalja locality of Vadodara, with 500 square metres to be 'gifted' outright and the remaining 478 square metres offered at a 45 per cent concession. The proposal, submitted by the municipal commissioner, is scheduled to come before the VMC's standing committee on 23 October for final approval, potentially drawing a line under a dispute that has stretched for more than 14 years.

What the Proposal Says

Under the VMC's plan, the 478 square metres not covered by the 'gift' would be allotted at 55 per cent of the rate determined by the Vadodara Urban Development Authority (VUDA) Valuation Committee. The allotment is contingent on specific terms and conditions laid out under a 2024 resolution of the state government's Urban Development and Urban Housing Department. The Gujarat government's resolution formally approving the allotment was issued on 13 August and reached the VMC on 29 August.

A Dispute Over a Decade in the Making

Pathan has sought to purchase the land since 2012. The VMC had initially agreed to his request, but the state government rejected the proposed sale in 2014. The matter resurfaced sharply in 2024, when the civic body issued him a notice demanding the removal of an alleged encroachment on the municipal land. Pathan challenged the notice in the Gujarat High Court, arguing the matter predated the notice by over a decade and that a show-cause notice should have preceded any eviction direction. He also contended that the land fell under the VMC's jurisdiction rather than the state government's. The High Court upheld the state government's earlier rejection of his original allotment request.

Court Proceedings and Withdrawal

Pathan subsequently appealed before a Division Bench of the Gujarat High Court, but withdrew the appeal in August after his counsel informed the court that he was pursuing resolution through the state government's policy route. His withdrawal came just two days after the state government's resolution reached the VMC on 29 August. Notably, an earlier attempt by the VMC to put the plot to public auction — following a standing committee valuation of ₹2.10 lakh per square metre, placing the entire parcel's estimated worth at around ₹20.5 crore — was withdrawn after the VMC's general board raised questions about the encroachment and the disposal of the plot before the dispute was settled.

Political Context: Pathan's Party Switch

The proposal arrives in the wake of Pathan's political realignment. Elected to the Lok Sabha from Baharampur in West Bengal on a Trinamool Congress (TMC) ticket, he parted ways with the party led by Mamata Banerjee in June this year. He was among 20 MPs who broke away from the TMC and joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), aligning with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Parliament. The timing of the VMC proposal — from a BJP-ruled civic body in a BJP-governed state — after his switch to the NDA-aligned bloc has not gone unnoticed by critics.

What Happens Next

The VMC standing committee's decision on 23 October will determine whether the allotment advances to the next stage of the civic body's approval process. If cleared, the land estate department will proceed with securing the remaining approvals required to formalise the allotment. The outcome will be closely watched given the intersection of a long-running civic dispute, a high-profile political transition, and a substantial concession on public land valued at roughly ₹20.5 crore.