Writ Petition No. 27775 of 2019 · The High Court
Case Details
- 1 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 23RD DAY OF JUNE, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM WRIT PETITION NO.27775 OF 2019 (LB-BMP) BETWEEN: 1. M/S. PREMIER PROPERTIES HAVING ITS OFFICE AT NO.61, 6TH CROSS, M.S. RAMAIAH CITY LAYOUT, J.P. NAGAR, 7TH PHASE, BANGALORE-560078, REPRESENTED BY ITS MANAGING PARTNERS, SRI. SRIDHAR M.K. AND SMT. JYOTHI SRIDHAR. 2. M/S. INSPIRA BUILDERS LLP HAVING ITS REGISTERED OFFICE AT NO.255, 36TH CROSS, 5TH MAIN, 4TH BLOCK, JAYANGAR BANGALORE - 560011, REPARESENTED BY ITS MANAGING PARTNERS, SRI. ARAVINDA M.S. AND SRI. PRABHAKARA U.R. 3. MR. DILIP MANUBHAI SHETH AGED ABOUT 54 YEAWRS S/O LATE MANUBHAI M SHETH RESIDING AT 14, 2ND MAIN, KSRTC LAYOUT, 2ND PHASE-J.P. NAGAR BANGALORE - 560078.
Legal Reasoning
Digitally signed by GEETHA P G Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA
Legal Reasoning
(BY SRI. NANDISH BABU K S., ADVOCATE) …PETITIONERS - 2 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR AND: 1. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA REP. BY ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY LABOUR DEPARTMENT 4TH FLOOR, VIKASA SOUDHA AMBEDKAR VEEDHI, BANGALORE-560001. 2. BRUHAT BANGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE REP. BY ITS COMMISSIONER, N.R. SQUARE, BANGALORE - 560002. 3. THE JOINT DIRECTOR (TOWN PLANNING-NORTH) BRUHAT BANGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE, N.R. SQUARE, BANGALORE-560002. (BY SRI. BOPANNA B., AGA FOR R.1; SRI S.N. PRASHANTH CHANDRA, ADVOCATE FOR R.2 & R.3.) …RESPONDENTS THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO QUASH THE GOVERNMENT ORDER BEARING NO.LD300 LET 2006 DATED 18.01.2007 AT ANNEXURE-F AND THE CORRIGENDUM BEARING NO.LD 300 LET 2006 DATED 28.02.2007 AT ANNEXURE-G ISSUED BY THE RESPONDENT 'LABOUR NO.1, MANDATING UPFRONT COLLECTION OF WELFARE CESS' BY THE RESPONDENT NO.3, ETC. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN 'B' GROUP, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR JUSTICE SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM - 3 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR ORAL ORDER This caption petition is filed seeking for the following reliefs: "Wherefore, it is most respectfully prayed that this Hon'ble Court be pleased to. i) ii) iii) Issue a Writ of Certiorari or similar Writ, Order or Direction to quash the Government Order bearing No.LD300 LET 2006 dated 18/01/2007 at Annexure-F and the Corrigendum bearing No.LD 300 LET 2006 dated 28/02/2007 at Annexure-G issued by the 1St Respondent, mandating upfront collection of 'Labour welfare Cess’ by the 3rd Respondent. Issue a Writ of Certiorari or similar Writ, Order or Direction to quash the Circular bearing No.He.Ni.Na.Yo/J.D.(N)/DM3/PR/320/2015-16 dated 04.09.2015 at Annexure- K issued by the Respondent No. 2, in so far as it relates to levy and collection of 'License Fee'. bearing Issue a Writ of Certiorari or similar Writ, Order or Direction to quash the Impugned Demand Notice No.BBMP/Addl.Dir/JD North/LP/0061/2018-19 dated 10/11-/06/2019 issued on 25-06-2019 at Annexure-E issued by the 3rd Respondent, in so far as it relates to levy and collection of "Ground Rent at Sl. No.1(1); License Fee at Sl. No.1(4); Service Charges on Labour Cess at SI. No.1(6); and Labour Cess at Si.No.II". iv) Issue a Writ of Mandamus or similar Writ, Order or Direction declaring the Respondent No.3 is not empowered to demand that - 4 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR or receive "Ground Rent at Sl. No.1(1): License Fee at Sl. No.1(4); Service Charges on Labour Cess at Sl.No.1(6); and Labour Cess at Sl. No.II payable and other Construction Workers Welfare Cess Board", under impugned demand notice at the Annexure-E. 'Building to v) Issue a Writ of Mandamus or similar Writ, Order or Direction directing the Respondents No.2 & 3 to issue Building License and sanction plan construct Residential/Commercial Building on the Schedule Property. to Issue any other Writ, Order or Direction as deemed fit and appropriate, under the facts and circumstances of the case." 2. It is brought to the notice of this Court that across the Bar, the issue is dealt by the Co-ordinate Bench in the reported judgment in W.P.No.36017/2018 and connected matters. The Co-ordinate Bench, while deciding the issue, has held that the bye-laws under which Ground Rent, License Fee, Building License fee, Scrutiny fee are levied are ultra vires the Act. The Co-ordinate Bench also quashed the circular dated 04.09.2015 and Government circulars dated 27.01.2017 and 30.03.2017. - 5 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR Therefore, this Court deems it fit to cull out the operative portion of the order, which reads as under; "O R D E R
Decision
(a) All the Writ Petitions are allowed. (b) The bye-laws under which Ground Rent, Licence Fee, Building Licence Fee, Scrutiny Fee, Security Deposit are all held ultravires the Act and are resultantly rendered unenforceable. (c) The Circular No.ºÉ¤£ÀAiÉÆÃ/eÉ.r(G)/rJªÀiï3/¦Dgï/320/2015-16 04.09.2015 stands quashed. bearing dated (d) The Circular bearing No.£ÀCE 36 ¨ÉªÀÄ¥Áæ 2016 (¨sÁUÀ) dated 27.01.2017 and the Circular bearing No. 30.03.2017 ºÉ¤£ÀAiÉÆÃ/¦Dgï/1533/2016-17 demanding Lake Rejuvenation Fee are quashed. dated (e) Imposition of labour cess under the Welfare Cess Act is upheld, but its demand for payment upfront in terms of Government Orders dated 18.01.2007 and 28.02.2007 stands quashed. (f) The State or the BBMP is not precluded from bringing in the impugned levies under the provisions of the Act or the Rules by making suitable amendments to the Act and the Rules. 368 (g) Petitioners in all these petitions who have deposited certain amounts in terms of the interim order passed by this Court before this Court are entitled to refund of the amounts so deposited. (h) Insofar as refund in other cases who have paid to the Corporation under protest, they shall be entitled to such refund only if the same is not collected from the consumers of the apartments, businesses as the case would be. - 6 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR (i) Insofar as all other payments made, they would all be at liberty to give representation to the BBMP and the BBMP would consider the refund of the amounts, in accordance with law and the findings of this Court. (j) If representations are made by the petitioners the BBMP shall pass appropriate orders within 12 weeks from the date of such representations. for refund, In view of disposal of the petitions, all Interlocutory Applications also stand pending disposed." 3. In the considered view of this Court, the issues raised in the present writ petition stand squarely covered by the authoritative pronouncement rendered by the Co- ordinate Bench of this Court in W.P.No.36017/2018 and connected matters. The Co-ordinate Bench, after examining the statutory framework and the impugned levy mechanisms adopted by the BBMP, categorically held that the imposition of Ground Rent, Licence Fee, Building Licence Fee, Scrutiny Fee, and Security Deposit lacked statutory sanction and were ultra vires the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976. The Co-ordinate Bench further held that Clause 3.8 of the BBMP Building Bye- laws, 2003, which provided for imposition of Ground Rent, - 7 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR was also devoid of legal authority and consequently struck it down. The Court also quashed the impugned Circular dated 04.09.2015 issued by respondent No.4, as well as the Government Orders dated 27.01.2017 and 30.03.2017, which had directed collection of such fees without statutory backing. With specific reference to labour welfare cess, the Co-ordinate Bench upheld the competence of the State to levy the cess under the Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act, 1996, but set aside the directive mandating its upfront collection through Government Orders dated 18.01.2007 and 28.02.2007, thereby rendering the demand raised in anticipation of sanction of building plans unlawful. The Co-ordinate Bench also clarified that the only charging provision available under the Act was sub- section (20-b) of Section 423, which merely enabled collection of fees for services relating to burial grounds and crematoria, and could not be relied upon for the imposition of unrelated charges such as ground rent or - 8 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR scrutiny fee. In light of these clear and binding findings, the controversy raised in the present writ petition does not survive for independent adjudication, as the grievance of the petitioner is directly addressed and resolved by the said judgment. Therefore, this Court is of the considered opinion that the present writ petition deserves to be allowed by applying the ratio and operative portion of the judgment rendered in W.P.No.36017/2018 and connected matters. 4. In view of the above, this Court proceeds to pass the following; ORDER (i) The writ petition is allowed. (ii) The impugned demand notice dated 10/11.06.2019 issued by respondent No.3 as per Annexure-E is hereby set-aside. (iii) Respondent 2 and 3 are hereby directed to issue fresh/modified plan as the case may be. - 9 - NC: 2025:KHC:21711 WP No. 27775 of 2019 HC-KAR (iv) Respondent Nos. 2 and 3 are hereby directed to forthwith process the petitioner's application seeking building license and sanction of the building plan, strictly in accordance with law. (v) It is made clear that the issuance of the building license and approval plan shall not be withheld merely on the ground that the BBMP is contemplating to file an appeal against the reported judgment. (vi) If the building lease and sanction plan are issued, the same shall be subjected to the outcome of any appeal that may be filed by the BBMP against the judgment. Pending applications, if any, are also disposed off. Sd/- (SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM) JUDGE VMB List No.: 2 Sl No.: 8