The Chhattisgarh High Court has ruled that it lacks the authority to exercise writ jurisdiction over a District Judge’s ruling, which upholds the imposition of property taxes and makes the District Judge the Appellate Authority under the Municipal Corporation Act 1956.
Deepak Agrawal & Ors, the petitioner has preferred this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India assailing order dated 31.07.2018 by which the Municipal Corporation has imposed property tax on petitioners’ property to the tune of Rs. 2,44,440/- and also challenged order dated 09.07.2024 passed by the learned Second Additional District Judge, Bastar at Jagdalpur in Misc. Civil Appeal No. 14/2018 by which the appeal preferred by the petitioners against order imposition of property tax, has been rejected.
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Counsel for respondent No. 1 as well as State would raise objection regarding maintainability of the writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging order passed by the appellate authority while exercising power under Section 149 of the Municipal Corporation Act. They would further submit that the the District Court is amenable revisional jurisdiction of this Court as per Section 115 of the Civil Procedure Code as such would pray for dismissal of the writ petition.
From bare perusal of Section 149 of the Act, 1956, it is quite vivid that the District Judge is Appellate Authority of the order passed by assessing officer under the Property Act and the Appellate Authority is amenable to revisional jurisdiction to the High Court as per Section 115 of the Civil Procedure Code. Accordingly, it is held that the writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India is not maintainable and Civil Revision under Section 115 of the Civil Procedure Code is maintainable.
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Single judge Justice Narendra Kumar Vyas viewed that the writ petition is not maintainable and the Civil Revision is maintainable. The petitioners have alternative efficacious remedy of filing Civil Revision under Section 115 of the Civil Procedure Code.
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