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High Court of KeralaSingle JudgeWrit petition dismissed; liberty to approach st...

SISTERS OF SAMARITAN HOLY SPIRT, HOLY SPIRIT GENERALATE, SAMARITAN CONGREGATION v. THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR, THRISSUR; THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER, THRISSUR; THE TAHSILDAR, THRISSUR TALUK; THE VILLAGE OFFICER, MULAYAM VILLAGE; THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER, NADATHARA GRAMA PANCHAYATH; LOCAL LEVEL MONITORING COMMITTEE NADATHARA GRAMA PANCHAYATH

Case / Petition Number:WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016

Case Details & Bench

Court
High Court of Kerala
Hon'ble Judges
  • Shaji P. Chaly
Judgment Date
2018-11-28
Court Decision / Holding
Writ petition dismissed. The petitioner is left with liberty to approach the Authority under Act, 2008 and the Kerala Land Utilization Order, 1967 read with Section 27A of Act, 2008, and if, at a later date, necessary orders are produced before the Tahsildar, such an application may be considered in accordance with law; tax shall be assessed taking into account the present tenure of the land under the Land Tax Act, 1961. The Recitals in Ext. P28 may not bar merits of any future application; all questions of fact and law are left open.
Final Disposition
Writ petition dismissed; liberty to approach statutory authorities under Act 2008 and LUL Order for potential future correction.

Parties to the Case

Appellants / Petitioners

  • Sisters of Samaritan Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit Generalate, Samaritan Congregation, PattalakunNU Desom, Mannuthy P.O., Thrissur Taluk and District - 680651, represented by its Superior General - Sr. Rose Cornelia

Respondents

  • District Collector, Thrissur, Thrissur Collectorate, Ayyanthole P.O., Thrissur-680003
  • Revenue Divisional Officer, Thrissur, Ayyanthole P.O., Thrissur-680003
  • Tahsildar, Thrissur Taluk, Taluk Office, Thrissur-680020
  • Village Officer, Mulayam Village, Vallakkavu, Kolzhukkullly P.O., Thrissur-680572
  • Agricultural Officer, NADATHARA Grama Panchayath, Kozhukkully P.O., Thrissur-680752
  • Local Level Monitoring Committee NADATHARA Grama Panchayath, represented by Agricultural Officer, NADATHARA Grama Panchayath, Kozhukkully P.O., Thrissur-680572

Legal Representation & Advocates

Counsels for Petitioners

  • • Sri.N.Subramaniam
  • • Smt.Neenu Pavithran
  • • Smt.Usha Narayanan
  • • Sri.M.S.Narayanan
  • • Sri.P.T.Girijan
  • • Sri.Shoby K.Francis

Counsels for Respondents

  • • Sri.M.L.Sajeevan
  • • Sri.R.Krishnakumar (Cherthala) (Amicus Curiae)

Case Synopsis & Summary

This writ petition (WP(C) No. 9740 of 2016) by the Sisters of Samaritan seeks to reclassify Exts P1–P7 lands from paddy land to garden land and to erase/alter entries in the Basic Tax Register (BTR) and village records accordingly. The petitioner asserts that the property is garden land and seeks corrective orders under the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008 (Act, 2008) and related instruments. It relies on the data bank created under the Act and contends that village records still show the land as paddy land. The court notes that amendments in 2018 (Amendment Act) introduced Section 27C empowering the Tahsildar to make additional entries in the BTR and village records after obtaining orders under the Kerala Land Utilization Order, 1967 read with Section 27A of Act, 2008, but emphasizes that such corrections require compliance with the statutory procedure. Citing Jalaja Dileep v. RDO, Fort Kochi (Apex Court), the court observes that deletion of entries may not be possible in certain circumstances. The petition is ultimately dismissed, with liberty to approach the appropriate statutory authorities under Act 2008 and the LUL Order for possible future correction, subject to due process and taking into account the present tenure of the land for tax purposes.

Provisions of Law Cited

Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008Section 27C of Act, 2008Kerala Land Utilization Order, 1967Section 27A of Act, 2008Amendment Act, 2018Land Tax Act, 1961

Submissions & Arguments

Contentions of Appellants / Petitioners

Petitioner contends that Exts P1–P7 lands should be reclassified as garden land in the Basic Tax Register (BTR) and in village records, arguing that the data bank under the Paddy Land and Wetland Act (2008) lists the land as paddy field and that corrections should be possible under the 2018 amendments (Section 27C) read with the Kerala Land Utilization Order, 1967 and Section 27A of Act, 2008, after obtaining requisite orders. They acknowledge no prior orders and urge the Court to permit correction through the statutory process.

Contentions of Respondents

Respondents oppose the relief, asserting that the land continues to be recorded as paddy land in the data bank, BTR and village records; deletion of such entries is not possible per Jalaja Dileep v. RDO (Apex Court), and corrections can be effected only after complying with the statutory framework (27A, 27C and LUL Order, 1967) and after obtaining the necessary orders; hence the petition should be dismissed.

Cited Precedents (1)

Case NameCitationTreatmentExplanation
Jalaja Dileep v. Revenue Divisional Officer, Fort KochiN/APositiveApex Court judgment cited to support the proposition that deletion of an entry from the BTR may not be possible, influencing the Court’s stance on corrections at this stage.

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Extracted Judgment Text

Exact text extracted from official judgment records.

## **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** ## **PRESENT** ## **THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SHAJI P.CHALY** **MONDAY ,THE 26TH DAY OF NOVEMBER 2018 / 5TH AGRAHAYANA, 1940** ## **W.P.(C) NO.9740 OF 2016** ## **PETITIONER:** **SISTERS OF SAMARITAN HOLY SPIRT, HOLY SPIRIT GENERALATE, SAMARITAN CONGREGATION, PATTALAKUNNU DESOM, MANNUTHY P.O., THRISSUR TALUK AND DISTRICT - 680 651, REPRESENTED BY ITS SUPERIOR GENERAL - SR. ROSE CORNELIA.** **BY ADVS. SRI.N.SUBRAMANIAM SMT.NEENU PAVITHRAN SMT.USHA NARAYANAN SRI.M.S.NARAYANAN SRI.P.T.GIRIJAN SRI.SHOBY K.FRANCIS** ## **RESPONDENTS:** |**1**|**THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR,**| |---|---| ||**THRISSUR, COLLECTORATE, AYYANTHOLE P.O,**| ||**THRISSUR - 680 003**| |**2**|**THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER**| ||**THRISSUR, AYYANTHOLE P.O., THRISSUR 680 003.**| |**3**|**THE TAHSILDAR**| ||**THRISSUR TALUK, TALUK OFFICE, THRISSUR - 680 020.**| |**4**|**VILLAGE OFFICER**| ||**MULAYAM VILLAGE, VALAKKAVU, KOLZHUKKULLY P.O.,**| ||**THRISSUR - 680 572.**| |**5**|**THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER**| ||**OFFICE OF THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER (LOCAL LEVEL**| ||**MONITORING COMMITTEE OF NADATHARA GRAMA PANCHAYATH),**| ||**KOZHUKKULLY P.O., THRISSUR - 680 752.**| WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016 2 **6 THE LOCAL LEVEL MONITORING COMMITTEE NADATHARA GRAMA PANCHAYATH, REPRESENTED BY THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER, OFFICE OF THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER, NADATHARA GRAMA PANCHAYATH, KOZHUKULLY P.O., THRISSUR- 680 572.** **R1 TO R6 BY SPECIAL GOVERNMENT PLEADER SRI.M.L.SAJEEVAN SRI.R.KRISHNAKUMAR (CHERTHALA) AMICUS CURIAE** **THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 26.11.2018, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:** WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016 3 ## **JUDGMENT** This writ petition is filed by the petitioner seeking the following reliefs: _i) Pass an order directing the 1[st] respondent, the District Collector, Thrissur to reclassify the lands belonging to the petitioner covered by Exts.P1 to P7 title deeds as garden land._ _ii)Pass an order directing the Tahsildar, Thrissur Taluk and the Village Officer, Mulayam Village to reclassify the lands of the petitioner covered by Exts.P1 to P7 title deeds as garden land in the Basic Tax Register._ _iii) Pass an order directing the Agricultural Officer, Nadathara Panchayat remove the lands of the petitioner covered by Exhibits P1 to P7 title deeds from the draft bank prepared for Nadathara Panchayat, Thrissur District._ 2. The sum and substance of the pleadings is with respect to Ext.P27 application submitted before the District Collector seeking direction to correct the BTR as well as village records including the land in question as dry land. It is an admitted case of the petitioner that, the land is WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016 4 included in the data bank constituted as per the provisions of the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008 and is remaining in the village records as well as BTR as 'paddy field'. Petitioner has submitted Ext.P27 application for correction of the BTR and village records, however, consequent to the judgment of the Apex Court in **Jalaja Dileep v. Revenue Divisional Officer, Fort Kochi** , the deletion of entry contained in the BTR as well as in the village records with respect to the basic tenure of the land is not possible. However, now section 27C is brought into Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008 as per Amendment Act, 2018 on and w.e.f. 30.12.2017, whereby the Tahsildar concerned is vested with powers to make any additional entry to the existing entry in the BTR and village records with respect to the present tenure of land, however, that can be done only after securing necessary orders from the statutory authority in accordance with the provisions of Kerala Land Utilization Order, 1967 r/w 27A of Act, 2008, as amended by Act, 2018. But since the petitioner has not undertaken any such exercise, I do not think, petitioner is entitled for any such relief at this stage of the WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016 5 proceedings. 3. In that view of the matter, the writ petition is dismissed leaving open the liberty of the petitioner to approach the Authority under Act, 2008 as well as under the Kerala Land Utilization Order, 1967 r/w.section 27A of Act, 2008 and if at a later point petitioner is producing necessary orders and making an application before the Tahsildar concerned under section 27Cof Act, 2008, it shall be considered in accordance with law and tax shall be assessed taking into account the present tenure of the land under Land Tax Act, 1961. I make it clear that, in the even of petitioner making any application as directed above, the recitals contained under Ext.P28 may not stand in the way of considering the application on merits of the matter. All questions of facts and law raised in this writ petition are left open. Sd/- Smv **SHAJI P.CHALY** 28.11.2018 ## **JUDGE** WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016 6 ## **APPENDIX** ## **PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS:** **EXHIBIT P1 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO.5745/2007 DATED 31/10/2007 OF THE SRO, KUTTANELLORE EXHIBIT P2 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO.5828/2007 DATED 05/11/2007 OF THE SRO, KUTTANELLORE EXHIBIT P3 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO. 5829/2007 DATED 05/11/2007 OF THE SRO, KUTTANELLORE EXHIBIT P4 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO.6033/2007 DATED 16/11/2007 OF THE SRO, KUTTANELLORE EXHIBIT P5 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO.6617/2007 DATED 19/12/2007 OF THE SRO, KUTTANELLORE EXHIBIT P6 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO.3074/2008 DATED 16/05/2008 OF THE SRO, KUTTANELLORE EXHIBIT P7 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO. 2519/2009 DATED 29/08/2009;P OF THE SRO, KUTTANELLORE EXHIBIT P8 TRUE COPY OF THE LAND TAX RECEIPT DATED 08/08/2012 EXHIBIT P9 P9-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P10 P10-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P11 P11-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P12 P12-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P13 P13-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P14 P14-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P15 P15-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P16 P16-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P17 P17-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P18 P18-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P19 P19-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH** WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016 7 **EXHIBIT P20 P20-TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EXHIBIT P21 P21-TRUE COPY OF THE DRAFT DATA BANK PREPARED FOR NADATHARA GRAMA PANCHAYATH EXHIBIT P22 P22-TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT DATED 17/02/2014 IN W.P(C) 3704/2014** **EXHIBIT P23 P23-TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER/REPORT DATED 19/06/2014 OF THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER, NADATHARA GRAMA PANCHAYATH EXHIBIT P24 P24-TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT DATED 13/01/2015 IN W.P(C) 23025/2014** **EXHIBIT P25 P25-TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 20/03/2014 ISSUED BY THE TAHSILDAR, THRISSUR TALUK. EXHIBIT P26 P26-TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT DATED 28/09/2015 IN W.P(C) 29166/2015 EXHIBIT P27 P27-TRUE COPY OF THE REPRESENTATION DATED 07/10/2015 SUBMITTED BEFORE THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR, THRISSUR** **EXHIBIT P28 P28-TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 06/01/2016 PASSED BY THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR, THRISSUR.** **RESPONDENTS' ANNEXURES:** **PROPERTY** **ANNEXURE A2 :A TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH EVIDENCING EASTERN BOUNDARY OF THE PETITIONER, SITE OF E.M.S. HOUSING PROJECT.** **ANNEXURE A3 :A TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH IN THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE PETITIONER'S PROPERTY** **ANNEXURE A4 :TWO PHOTOGRAPHS EVIDENCING NORTHERN BOUNDARY OF THE PETITIONER** **ANNEXURE A5: A TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH OF CANAL FLOWING THROUGH THE PETITIONER'S PROPERTY** **ANNEXURE A6:A TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH SHOWING LOWER LEVEL PROPERTY OF THE PETITIONER** **ANNEXURE A7:A TRUE COPY OF THE SATELLITE IMAGE OF THE PETITIONER'S PROPERTY IN THE YEAR 2008** WP(C).No. 9740 of 2016 8