Allowed

Tomy Wilfred v. State of Kerala

Kerala HC20 Jul 2023WP(C)/20900/2023

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Petitioners, depositors facing criminal action under the BUDS Act, filed a writ petition seeking a direction to the District Collector to consider their representations regarding unpaid dues and initiate appropriate action under the BUDS Act within two months.

What did the court decide?

Direction to the 3rd respondent to consider the claim of the petitioners as projected in Ext.P1 and Ext.P2 and initiate appropriate action within two months.

Tomy Wilfred Vs State of Kerala — Banking and Recovery | Kerala HC (2023)

¶1

IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM

¶2

PRESENT

¶3

THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BECHU KURIAN THOMAS THURSDAY, THE 20^TH DAY OF JULY 2023 / 29TH ASHADHA, 1945 WP(C) NO. 20900 OF 2023

¶4

PETITIONER/S:

¶5

1TOMY WILFRED
AGED 62 YEARS
S/O. WILFRED THEANCE PEREIRA, SALOM, NEAR MISSION
SCHOOL, THRIPUNITHURA P.O., ERNAKULAM REP. BY HIS
POA HOLDER SASIKUMAR G, AGED 71 YEARS, S/O. LATE.
GOPALA PILLAI, ASWATHY, ELAMANAGRAMAM,
THAMARAKULANGARA ROAD, TRIPUNITHURA NADAMA
VILLAGE, TRIPUNITHURA, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682301
2SHILA
AGED 58 YEARS
W/O. TOMY WILFRED PEREIRA, SALOM, NEAR MISSION
SCHOOL, THRIPUNITHURA P.O., ERNAKULAM REP. BY HIS
POA HOLDER SASIKUMAR G, AGED 71 YEARS, S/O. LATE.
GOPALA PILLAI, ASWATHY, ELAMANAGRAMAM,
THAMARAKULANGARA ROAD, TRIPUNITHURA NADAMA
VILLAGE, TRIPUNITHURA, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682301
BY ADVS.
JOBY CYRIAC
KURIAN K JOSE

¶6

RESPONDENT/S:

¶7

1 STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY THE SECRETARY, HOME DEPARTMENT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695001

¶8

2 THE COMPETENT AUTHORITY AS PER SECTION 7 OF BANNING OF UNREGULATED DEPOSITSCHEMES ACT, 2019 (BUDS) SECRETARY, HOME DEPARTMENT,GOVERNMENT OF KERALA, SECRETARIAT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695001

¶9

3 THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR ERNAKULAM & ASSISTANT COMPETENT AUTHORITY COLLECTORATE, KAKKANAD, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682030 BY ADVS.

¶10

K.R.RANJITH, GOVERNMENT PLEADER WITH STATE
ATTORNEY()

¶11

W.P. (C) No. 20900 of 2023

¶12

¶13

THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR
ADMISSION ON 20.07.2023, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY
DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:

¶14

W.P. (C) No. 20900 of 2023

¶15

¶16

BECHU KURIAN THOMAS, J.

¶17

==============================

¶18

W.P. (C) No. 20900 of 2023

¶19

-------------------------------------------------- Dated this the 20^th day of July 2023

¶20

J U D G M E N T

¶21

Petitioners seek inter alia, a direction to the 3^rd respondent – the District Collector, to consider and take appropriate action on Exts. P1 and P2 representations.

¶22

Petitioners are depositors with one of the Popular Group of Companies, who are facing criminal action under various penal provisions of law including those under the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019 (for short ‘the BUDS Act’. Petitioner claim to have deposited large amounts of money. The details of the deposits collected from the petitioners by the deposit taker, had not been submitted to the Designated Court, petitioners had filed Ext.P1 and P2 representations before the District Collector to initiate action under section 14 and 15 of the BUDS Act.

¶23

As per Government Circular dated 20.06.2023, the Government has issued directions to the District Collectors to take, suo motu action for identifying the assets as well as to file necessary

¶24

W.P. (C) No. 20900 of 2023

¶25

¶26

applications under Section 14 of the BUDS Act for making the provisional attachments of properties.

¶27

It was submitted by the learned Government Pleader that action has already been initiated as per law and necessary applications under Section 14 of the BUDS Act have already been filed before the Designated Court as O.P No.36 of 2023.

¶28

As per Rule 8 of the BUDS Rules, 2020, an application for confirmation of provisional attachment, submitted by the Competent Authority must inter alia include the list of dues owed to depositors including amounts that may be realised from the sale of any attached property of the deposit taker.

¶29

The grievance of the petitioners stems from the allegations that their name and the amounts due to them have not been included by the Competent Authority in the application filed for confirmation of provisional attachment.

¶30

Since through Ext.P1 and Ext.P2, petitioners claim to have informed the Competent Authority about the dues allegedly owed by the deposit takers to them , it is for the said Competent Authority to take a decision on the materials supplied/to be supplied by the petitioners within a reasonable time. It is certainly the mandate of the Statute that while applying for confirmation of provisional

¶31

W.P. (C) No. 20900 of 2023

¶32

¶33

attachment, the Competent Authority must include all amounts due to the depositors. Therefore, if petitioners are actually depositors with the deposit taker, certainly their dues are liable to be included in the list of depositors.

¶34

In view of the above, there will be a direction to the 3^rd respondent to consider the claim of the petitioners as projected in Ext.P1 and Ext.P2 and initiate appropriate action in accordance with law, as early as possible, at any rate, within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment. Petitioners will be at liberty to produce sufficient materials to justify their claim that they

¶35

had deposited amounts with the deposit taker.

¶36

The writ petition is allowed as above.

¶37

sd/

¶38

BECHU KURIAN THOMAS JUDGE

¶39

jm/

¶40

W.P. (C) No. 20900 of 2023

¶41

¶42

¶43

PETITIONER EXHIBITS
Exhibit P1TRUE COPY OF THE REPRESENTATION DATED
12-06-2023 SUBMITTED TO THE 3RD
RESPONDENT ON BEHALF OF THE 1ST
PETITIONER, ALONG WITH ITS ENCLOSURES
Exhibit P1(a)TRUE COPY OF THE POSTAL RECEIPT DATED
14-06-2023 OF EXT P1
Exhibit P2TRUE COPY OF THE REPRESENTATION DATED
12-06-2023 SUBMITTED TO THE 3RD
RESPONDENT ON BEHALF OF THE 2ND
PETITIONER, ALONG WITH ITS ENCLOSURES
Exhibit P2(a)TRUE COPY OF THE POSTAL RECEIPT DATED
14-06-2023 OF EXT P2
Exhibit P3TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT OF THIS
HON'BLE COURT IN W.P. (C) NO.
6645/2023, DATED 17-03-2023

Tomy Wilfred v. State of Kerala

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Tomy Wilfred v. State of Kerala

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

What the court decided

A compact analysis

Issues for consideration

Statutes considered

Parties & counsel

Coram

Case details

Similar cases

K.P. Hassan Vs Canara Bank

Ashraf Kondotyparamban Vs the State of Kerala

Murshid Alam Vs State of Kerala

Shyamala.M.K. Vs State of Kerala

Bijukumar V.S Vs State of Kerala

Syed Abdulla Yousaf Vs State of Kerala