The court quashed a fee payment notice issued to the petitioner for land use permission, directing the collecting officer to recompute fees on the assumption that the land lay within the Grama Panchayat limits, not a Municipality.
Quashing of the fee payment communication; direction to recompute fees and issue new communication within three weeks.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P.B.SURESH KUMAR
WEDNESDAY, THE 27TH DAY OF JANUARY 2021 / 7TH MAGHA, 1942
WP(C).No.27731 OF 2020(N)
PETITIONER:
SREELAKSHMI PRADEEP AGED 35 YEARS W/O. PRADEEP KURIAKOSE, GREEN VALLEY VILLA, THOTTAKKATTUKARA, ALUVA, ERNAKULAM - 683108.
BY ADV. SRI.N.KRISHNA RAJA MAULI
RESPONDENTS:
1 THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR CIVIL STATION, KAKKANAD, ERNAKULAM - 682030.
2 THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER, REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICE, K.B JACOB ROAD, FORT KOCHI - 682001.
3 THE TAHSILDAR,
4 THE VILLAGE OFFICER, KOTTUVALLY VILLAGE OFFICE, KOTTUVALLY, KAITHARAM SOUTH, ERNAKULAM - 683519.
5 THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER, KOTTUVALLY AGRICULTURAL OFFICE, KOTTUVALLY, KAITHARAM P.O,ERNAKULAM - 683519.
6 KOTTUVALLY GRAMA PANCHAYATH, REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY, KOONAMMAVU, VALLUVALLY, N.PARVOOR, ERNAKULAM - 683518.
R1 – R5 BY ADV.SRI.K.J.MANURAJ, GP R6 BY ADV. SRI.BABU KARUKAPADATH
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 27.01.2021, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
WP(C).No.27731 OF 2020(N)
2
W.P.(C) No.27731 of 2020
J U D G M E N T
Ext.P4 is an application preferred by the petitioner in Form No.6 of the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Rules for permission to use the land referred to therein which is an 'un-notified land' in terms of the provisions of the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008 for other purposes. On Ext.P4 application, the petitioner has been issued Ext.P6 communication, directing her to pay a sum of Rs.20,18,000/- towards the fees payable for the application. Ext.P6 communication is under challenge in the writ petition. The case of the petitioner is that the land is one situated within the limits of the sixth respondent Panchayat and Ext.P6 communication has been issued on an erroneous assumption that the land is situated within the limits of a Municipality.
In the circumstances, the writ petition is allowed, Ext.P6 communication is quashed and the second respondent is directed to
WP(C).No.27731 OF 2020(N)
3
re-compute the fees payable by the petitioner for Ext.P4 application and issue appropriate communication to the petitioner. This shall be
done within three weeks.
Sd/-
P.B.SURESH KUMAR
JUDGE
Mn
WP(C).No.27731 OF 2020(N)
4
APPENDIX
PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS:
EXHIBIT P1 TRUE COPY OF THE TAX RECEIPT DATED 24.01.2020. EXHIBIT P2 TRUE COPY OF THE BUILDING PERMIT NO. E32364/10-11 DATED 4.12.2010. EXHIBIT P3 TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY ISSUED BY THE 5TH RESPONDENT DATED NIL. EXHIBIT P4 TRUE COPY OF THE APPLICATION IN FORM 6 PREFERRED BY THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE 2ND RESPONDENT DATED 30.09.2020 ALONG WITH RECEIPT. EXHIBIT P5 TRUE COPY OF THE REPORT FILED BY THE 4TH RESPONDENT VILLAGE OFFICER BEFORE THE 2ND RESPONDENT DATED 2.11.2020. EXHIBIT P6 TRUE COPY OF THE NOTICE DATED 27.11.2020 ISSUED BY DEPUTY TAHSILDAR.
//TRUE COPY// PA TO JUDGE
3 issues framed by the court
Whether the communication directing payment of fees for land use permission was issued on an erroneous assumption regarding the land's location within a Municipality.
Whether a land payment order issued against a Panchayat land should be treated as applicable to a Municipality.
What is to be done regarding the computation of fees for the application by the petitioner.
SREELAKSHMI PRADEEP
THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR CIVIL STATION, KAKKANAD, ERNAKULAM
THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER
THE TAHSILDAR
THE VILLAGE OFFICER, KOTTUVALLY
AGR CULTURAL OFFICER
P.B.SURESH KUMAR
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
