T.K. Thomas v. Kerala State Housing Board

Case Details & Bench

Court: High Court of Kerala
Hon'ble Judges: S. Siri Jagan
Judgment Date: 2012-03-13
Court Decision / Holding: Writ petition disposed of with directions: respondents to issue a statement of accounts detailing the calculation of the amount due, including interest, strictly in accordance with the Narayana Poduval guidelines; the statement to be furnished within one month from receipt of a copy of the judgment; any excess interest recovered to be refunded within a further month.
Final Disposition: Disposed of with directions to compute accounts and refund excess interest per Supreme Court guidelines.

Parties to the Case

Appellants / Petitioners

T.K. Thomas

Respondents

Kerala State Housing Board, represented by its Secretary
The Regional Engineer, Kerala State Housing Board

Legal Representation & Advocates

Counsels for Petitioners

• Sri P.K. Jose
• Smt. Tessy Jose

Counsels for Respondents

• Sri George Boban, SC
• Sri Poovappally M. Ramachandran Nair, SC

Case Synopsis & Summary

WP(C) No. 37434 of 2007 concerns the challenge by T.K. Thomas against the Kerala State Housing Board regarding the purchase price of a flat allotted to him. The petitioner, who suffered from cancer, was compelled to transfer the flat to a third party and contends that he paid an additional Rs 84,008 beyond the fixed price. He seeks a writ of mandamus directing the Board to refund this amount with interest from the date of payment (16.12.2006). The respondents contend that the Rs 84,008 is the balance of the final price to cover actual expenditure under the housing scheme and that no excess has been collected; moreover, since the petitioner has relinquished his rights by transfer, he cannot claim a refund. The court notes the undisputed fact of the extra payment and acknowledges no explicit averment that the amount corresponds to compensation for land acquisition, though it notes that such amounts are often adjusted upon finalisation of acquisition references. The judge refers to Supreme Court guidelines on interest on enhanced compensation and cites Kerala State Housing Board v. Narayana Poduval as the latest authority. The petition is disposed of with directions to issue a statement of accounts detailing the calculation of the amount due, with interest calculated in accordance with the cited decision, and to refund any excess interest within the prescribed time, emphasizing transparency and proper accounting rather than a broad refund of principal."

Legal Doctrines & Maxims

Estoppel (not estopped from claiming refund of excess amount despite transfer)
Guidelines for realisation of interest on enhanced compensation (Supreme Court Narayana Poduval decision)

Submissions & Arguments

Contentions of Appellants / Petitioners

The petitioner contends that Rs.84,008 was paid in excess of the final price and seeks refund with interest. He states that payment was made under protest due to his cancer and medical urgency, and maintains that the amount does not appear to be an ‘enhanced compensation’ payable for land acquisition. He argues that estoppel should not bar his claim and that the Board must furnish a correct statement of realisation, calculating interest according to Supreme Court guidelines.

Contentions of Respondents

The respondents contend that Rs.84,008 represents the balance due on the final price, reflecting actual expenditure under the housing scheme, and that no excess has been collected. Since the petitioner has transferred the flat, he cannot claim a refund of the excess. They acknowledge that interest guidelines from the Supreme Court should apply, but argue the precise calculation requires proper evidence and reply from the petitioner.

Cited Precedents (1)

Case Name	Citation	Treatment	Explanation
Kerala State Housing Board and another v. Narayana Poduval and others	SLP Nos.21478/2008, 21817/08 and 22115/08	Positive	Court refers to this Supreme Court decision as the controlling authority on interest on enhanced compensation, directing that interest be calculated in accordance with its guidelines.

Extracted Judgment Text

Exact text extracted from official judgment records.

## **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** ## **PRESENT:** ## **THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE S.SIRI JAGAN** ## **TUESDAY, THE 13TH DAY OF MARCH 2012/23RD PHALGUNA 1933** ## **WP(C).No. 37434 of 2007 (F)** **----------------------------------------** **PETITIONER(S):** **-------------** **T.K.THOMAS, AGED 60 YEARS, S/O. KOSHI THOMAS, THAVALATHIL HOUSE, KARIMPANAKUZHY, MAKKAMKUNNU, PATHANAMTHITTA-689 645.** **BY ADVS.SRI.P.K.JOSE SMT.TESSY JOSE** **RESPONDENTS** **----------------------** **1. KERALA STATE HOUSING BOARD, REP. BY ITS SECRETARY, ERNAKULAM DIVISION, PANAMPILLY NAGAR, KOCHI-682 036.** **2. THE REGIONAL ENGINEER, KERALA STATE HOUSING BOARD, ERNAKULAM, KOCHI-682 036.** **R1-R2 BY SRI.GEORGE BOBAN, SC, K.S.H.B. BY POOVAPPALLY M.RAMACHANDRAN NAIR,SC.KSHB** **THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 13-03-2012, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:** **MG** **WP(C).No. 37434 of 2007 (F) ----------------------------------------** ## **APPENDIX** ## **PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS:** **EXT.P1:COPY OF REPRESENTATION DATED 08.12.2006 SUBMITTED BY THE PETITIONER TO THE 2ND RESPONDENT. EXT.P2:COPY OF THE REPRESENTATION DATED 05.02.2007 SUBMITTED BY THE PETITIONER TO THE 2ND RESPONDENT. RESPONDENT'S EXHIBITS: EXT.R1(A):COPY OF TRANSFER ORDER DATED 19.01.2007. EXT.R1(B):COPY OF TRANSFER AGREEMENT 23.01.2007. EXT,R1(C):COPY OF REPLY DATED 07.03.2007. EXT.R1(D):COPY OF REPLY DATED 23.04.2007.** **//TRUE COPY//** **PA TO JUDGE** ## **MG** ## **S. SIRI JAGAN, J.** ------------------------------------------- ## W.P.(C) No.37434 of 2007 ---------------------------------------------Dated this the 13[th] day of March, 2012 ## **JUDGMENT** The petitioner was alloted a flat by the Kerala State Housing Board. The petitioner paid price fixed for the same. Subsequently, the petitioner was afflicted by cancer. Therefore, he was forced to transfer the flat to a third party. The petitioner contends that the petitioner was forced to pay an additional amount of Rs.84,008/- for completing the said transaction. The petitioner submits that the petitioner paid the amount under pretest to enable the petitioner to transfer the flat to a third party. The petitioner now seeks refund of the amount of Rs.84,008/-, which, according to the petitioner, has been paid by the petitioner in excess of what is actually due, with interest thereon. The petitioner seeks the following relief: “a) To issue a writ of mandamus commanding the 1[st] respondent Board to refund the amount of Rs.84,008/- to the petitioner along with interest from the date of payment on 16.12.2006” ## 2. A counter affidavit has been filed by respondents 1 W.P.(C)No.37434/07 2 and 2 wherein the stand taken is that Rs.84,008/- realised from the petitioner represents the balance amount out of the final price fixed taking into the actual expenditure in respect of the said housing scheme and no excess amount has been collected from the petitioner. It is further submitted that since the petitioner has already transferred the flat to a third party relinquishing all the rights of the petitioner, the petitioner cannot now raise a contention regarding refund of any excess amount paid to the petitioner. 3. I have considered the rival contentions in detail. It is not disputed before me that the petitioner was required to pay additional amount of Rs.84,008/- towards the purchase price of the flat. Insofar as what the petitioner seeks is refund of alleged excess amount paid by him, he is not estopped from claiming the same just because he has already transferred the flat to a third party. Although in the counter affidavit the Housing Board states that the amount collected is the balance amount payable by the petitioner on finalising the expenditure of the Scheme in which the flat was constructed, there is no definite averment that, that amount represents the additional compensation paid for acquisition of the land in question, W.P.(C)No.37434/07 3 although the learned Standing Counsel would argue so before me. But, the petitioner has not filed any reply to the counter affidavit. It is common knowledge that the Housing Board usually originally allots land, flat, house etc on the basis of the price fixed at the time of allotment with a condition that, when land acquisition references are finalised, the proportionate additional compensation amount paid by Board with interest will have to be paid by the allottees. I presume that the case of respondents 1 and 2 is that the additional amount recovered from the petitioner represents that amount. But, in respect of the same, the Supreme Court has laid down guidelines for realisation of interest from the allottees on the enhanced compensation amount. The latest of such decision is _**Kerala State Housing Board and another**_ v. _**Narayana Poduval and others**_ in SLP Nos.21478/2008, 21817/08 and 22115/08 a copy of which has been handed over to me across the bar. Therefore, I am of opinion that respondents 1 and 2 can realise the interest on the enhanced compensation only in accordance with that decision. In the above circumstances, this writ petition is disposed of with the following directions: Respondents 1 and 2 shall issue a statement of accounts 4 W.P.(C)No.37434/07 to the petitioner detailing the calculation of amount due from the petitioner in which the calculation of interest shall be strictly in accordance with the above said Supreme Court decision. The same shall be issued to the petitioner within one month from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment. If any excess interest has been recovered from the petitioner, the same shall be refunded to the petitioner within another one month therefrom. ## **S. SIRI JAGAN, JUDGE** acd W.P.(C)No.37434/07 5 W.P.(C)No.37434/07 6