P.J. Baby @ Joseph Baby v District Collector, Pathanamthitta and others

## **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** ## **PRESENT** ## **THE HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE ANU SIVARAMAN** **THURSDAY, THE 17[TH] DAY OF FEBRUARY 2022 / 28TH MAGHA, 1943** ## **WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022** ## **PETITIONER:** **P.J. BABY @ JOSEPH BABY AGED 73 YEARS S/O. JOSEPH, PARAYIL HOUSE, MAKKAMKUNNU, PATHANAMTHITTA 689 645** **BY ADVS. JACOB P.ALEX JOSEPH P.ALEX MANU SANKAR P. AMAL AMIR ALI** ## **RESPONDENTS:** - **1 DISTRICT COLLECTOR PATHANAMTHITTA, CIVIL STATION, PATHANAMTHITTA, PIN 689 645** - **2 REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER(RDO) REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICE, ADOOR, PATHANAMTHITTA DISTRICT PIN 691 523** - **3 TAHASILDAR (LAND RECORDS) TALUK OFFICE, KOZHENCHERRY TALUK, MINI CIVIL STATION, PATHANAMTHITTA PIN 689 645** - **4 VILLAGE OFFICER VILLAGE OFFICE, MINI CIVIL STATION, PATHANAMTHITTA PIN 689 645** - **5 AGRICULTURAL OFFICER KRISHI BHAVAN, PATHANAMTHITTA PIN 689 645 VINITHA B-SR.GP** **THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON** - **17.02.2022, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:** WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022 **-2-** ## **JUDGMENT** ## **Dated this the 17[th] day of February, 2022** The petitioner claims to be the owner in possession of 15.58 Ares of land in Re-Survey No.17/1-1 of Pathanamthitta Village, Kozhencherry Taluk, Pathanamthitta District. Ext.P2 order had been passed by the RDO under the KLU order permitting conversion for construction of a building. It is submitted that the land is not included in the finalized notified data bank. The petitioner had thereafter submitted an application before the RDO on which Ext.P6 notice was issued requiring payment of 10% of the fair value of property as fees for the conversion. An amount of Rs.3,76,796/- was required to be paid for consideration of the application in Form 6. The petitioner submitted Ext.P7 representation before the Tahsildar (Land Records) requesting a consideration of his application under Section 6A of the Kerala Land Tax Act, 1961 for the WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022 **-3-** alteration/inclusion in the Basic Tax Register of the property as purayidom in the light of Ext.P2 order and the petitioner seeks a consideration of the same. 2. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the issue stands squarely covered by the decision of a Division Bench of this Court in **District Collector, Ernakulam and others v. Fr.Jose Uppani and others [2020 (4) KLT 612]** . It is submitted that the 3[rd] respondent is duty bound to consider Ext.P7 application exercising powers under Section 6A of the Kerala Land Tax Act. It is submitted that necessary additional entries will have to be made in the Basic Tax Register maintained in terms of Rule 4 of the Kerala Land Tax Rules to show the change in nature of the land and a reassessment will have to be effected in respect of the properties in question. It is submitted that the mere fact that the petitioner had mistakenly made an application under Form 6 cannot be a ground for the 3[rd] respondent to refuse to consider Ext.P7 representation and the application in Form A submitted therewith. WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022 **-4-** 3. The learned counsel for the petitioner would further submit that the entry to be made in the revenue records should not be as 'converted land', since there is no such classification of land as provided in the relevant enactments and that in view of the conversion duly carried out by the petitioner, the land should be shown as 'garden land/dry land/purayidom' in the altered Basic Tax Register. 4. Having considered the contentions advanced, I notice that Ext.P2 is an order passed by the RDO under Clause 6(2) of the Kerala Land Utilization Order. The property referred to in Ext.P2 is 38.500 cents of land in Survey No.17/1-1 of Pathanamthitta Village. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that there is already a house in the property and it is in respect of the very same property that Ext.P7 representation and application under Section 6A of the Kerala Land Tax Act is filed. If that be so, going by the decisions of a Division Bench of this Court in **District Collector, Ernakulam and others v. Fr.Jose Uppani and others [2020 (4) KLT 612]** and in **Iype** WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022 **-5-** ## **Varghese v. Revenue Divisional Officer, Idukki and others** **[2020 (5) KLT 403]** and in other reported decisions of this Court, there was no requirement for the filing of a Form 6 application and the petitioner could directly have filed an application under Section 6A of the Land Tax Act. The mere fact that the petitioner has wrongly filed an application in Form 6, cannot, by itself cloth the RDO with powers to require the payment of fees under Section 27A, in view of the fact that such an application was itself unnecessary in law. I am, therefore of the opinion that the requirement made to the petitioner to remit an amount of Rs.3,76,796/- as fee for the conversion of the property is completely untenable and the petitioner is not required to make such payment for effecting change in the revenue records . 5. In the result, Ext.P6 is set aside. There will be a direction to the 3[rd] respondent to take up, consider Ext.P7 application preferred by the petitioner, in the light of the judgments referred to above and pass appropriate orders after WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022 **-6-** considering all relevant aspects of the matter including the nature and identity of the property and the fact whether the conversion had been carried out pursuant to Ext.P2 order. If the facts stated are found to be correct and if the application is liable to be considered, then, the appropriate steps shall be taken for correction of the entry/alteration of the revenue records by entering the property as garden land/dry land/purayidom. The entire proceedings shall be completed within a period of two months from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment. This writ petition is ordered accordingly. **Sd/-** **ANU SIVARAMAN** **JUDGE** spk WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022 **-7-** ## **APPENDIX OF WP(C) 3486/2022** ## **PETITIONER EXHIBITS** - **Exhibit P1** **TRUE COPY OF LAND TAX RECEIPT NO.0974299 DATED 16.06.2021 ISSUED FROM PATHANAMTHITTA VILLAGE OFFICE WITH RESPECT TO THE SAID PROPERTY.** - **Exhibit P2 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER BEARING PROCEEDINGS NO.2805/93/B5-KDIS(UNDATED) ISSUED BY THE RDO, ADOOR.** - **Exhibit P3** - **TRUE COPY OF THE BUILDING TAX RECEIPT NO.9646 DATED 22.09.2017 ISSUED BY THE PATHANAMTHITTA MUNICIPALITY FOR DOOR NOS.XXII/20-24.** - **Exhibit P3 A TRUE COPY OF THE BUILDING TAX RECEIPT NO.9647 DATED 22.09.2017 ISSUED BY THE PATHANAMTHITTA MUNICIPALITY FOR DOOR NOS.XXII/25-29.** - **Exhibit P3 B TRUE COPY OF THE BUILDING TAX RECEIPT NO.9648 DATED 22.09.2017 ISSUED BY THE PATHANAMTHITTA MUNICIPALITY FOR DOOR NOS.XXII/30-34.** - **Exhibit P3 C TRUE COPY OF THE BUILDING TAX RECEIPT NO.9649 DATED 22.09.2017 ISSUED BY THE PATHANAMTHITTA MUNICIPALITY FOR DOOR NOS.XXII/35-41.** - **Exhibit P4** - **TRUE COPY OF THE CERTIFICATE DATED 22.06.2016 BEARING NO.R1-5601/2016 ISSUED BY THE MUNICIPAL SECRETARY, PATHANAMTHITTA.** **Exhibit P5 TRUE COPY OF THE CERTIFICATE DATED 29.07.2019 ISSUED FROM THE KRISHIBHAVAN, PATHANAMTHITTA.** WP(C) NO. 3486 OF 2022 **-8-** **Exhibit P6** **TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 23.12.2021 BEARING PROCEEDIGNS NO.B6-6620/2019 ISSUED BY THE RDO, ADOOR.** **Exhibit P7 TRUE COPY OF THE APPLICATION AND FORM A DATED 25.01.2022 SUBMITTED BY THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE 3RD RESPONDENT.** **RESPONDENT'S/S EXHIBITS : NIL**