Samson Clement Christian vs State Of Gujarat on 23 March, 2026

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                             C/SCA/5109/2022                                    ORDER DATED: 23/03/2026

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                                   IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD

                                     R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 5109 of 2022

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                                                SAMSON CLEMENT CHRISTIAN
                                                          Versus
                                                 STATE OF GUJARAT & ORS.
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                      Appearance:
                      MR.MRUDUL M BAROT(3750) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
                      MR ABHISHEK JAIN AGP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
                      MR RITURAJ M MEENA(3224) for the Respondent(s) No. 2,3
                      NOTICE SERVED BY DS for the Respondent(s) No. 4,5
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                         CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE NIRAL R. MEHTA

                                                          Date : 23/03/2026

                                                            ORAL ORDER

[1] By way of the present petition preferred under Article

226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has prayed for

issuance of an appropriate direction to the Ahmedabad Municipal

Corporation to reconsider the Tax Bill issued to the petitioner and

to reassess the same after undertaking necessary verification and

inquiry, and thereafter to issue a fresh Tax Bill in accordance with

law.

[2] The brief facts necessary for adjudication of the present

petition are as under:

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[2.1] The petitioner claims to be a social worker engaged in

social welfare activities for the upliftment of the downtrodden

sections of society since the year 1997.

[2.2] It is the case of the petitioner that since the year 2000

he has been residing at the address mentioned in the cause title of

the petition. In support thereof, the petitioner relies upon various

government documents such as Aadhar Card, Election Card,

Driving License, Gas Connection and other related documents. It is

further stated that the residential premises was initially owned by

one Sonalben w/o Ketan Trajkar and thereafter, by virtue of a

registered Sale Deed dated 16th September 2008, the petitioner

became the lawful owner of the said property.

[2.3] According to the petitioner, till the year 2012 there was

no dispute with regard to the Tax Bill. However, for the year 2013-

14, a Tax Bill dated 3rd August 2013 came to be issued treating the

premises as a commercial office and thereby a commercial tax

amounting to Rs.25,495/- was levied. The petitioner paid the said

Tax Bill on 31st August 2013.

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[2.4] It is further the case of the petitioner that thereafter he

submitted several representations in the year 2014 requesting

reconsideration of the assessment. However, subsequently in the

year 2021, a further Tax Bill dated 14th September 2021

amounting to Rs.3,47,065/- was issued on the basis that the

premises was being used for commercial purposes. Aggrieved

thereby, the petitioner made a representation dated 28th

September 2021 to respondent No.2 requesting reconsideration of

the said assessment. Since no action was taken on the said

representation, the petitioner addressed a reminder representation

dated 31st January 2022 requesting the respondent authorities to

take appropriate steps.

[3] Being aggrieved by the aforesaid action on the part of

the respondent authorities, the petitioner has approached this

Court by filing the present petition under Article 226 of the

Constitution of India seeking appropriate writ, order or direction.

[4] Heard learned advocate Mr. Mrudul Barot appearing

for the petitioner and learned advocate Mr. Rituraj Meena

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appearing for the respondent authorities.

[5] Learned advocate Mr. Barot appearing for the petitioner

has advanced the following submissions in support of the petition:

[5.1] It is contended that the respondent authorities have

issued commercial Tax Bills without following the due process of

law and without carrying out proper verification of documents or

conducting any site inspection. It is therefore submitted that the

action of the respondents in issuing commercial Tax Bills is

arbitrary and contrary to law.

[5.2] It is further submitted that the premises in question is

predominantly used for residential purposes. In support of the said

contention, reliance is placed upon documentary evidence such as

Aadhar Card, Election Card, Driving License, Gas Connection and

other documents reflecting the residential use of the premises. It is

therefore argued that the classification of the premises as

commercial is wholly without basis and deserves to be set aside.

[5.3] Learned advocate for the petitioner further submitted

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that the petitioner is residing in the premises while simultaneously

engaging in charitable activities and extending assistance to needy

persons of the society.

[5.4] It is also submitted that merely because the residential

premises is used as a correspondence address for receiving postal

communication relating to "O M India", the same cannot be treated

as constituting commercial use of the premises.

[5.5] It is further submitted that although a commercial Tax

Bill was issued in the year 2013 and the same was paid by the

petitioner, the respondent authorities have continued to issue

commercial Tax Bills without considering the representations

submitted by the petitioner. It is therefore urged that this Court

may exercise its jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of

India and grant appropriate relief in the interest of justice.

[6] On the aforesaid grounds, learned advocate for the

petitioner has prayed that the present petition be allowed and

appropriate directions be issued to the respondent authorities to

issue a fresh Tax Bill after proper reconsideration.

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[7] Per contra, learned advocate Mr. Rituraj Meena

appearing for respondent Nos.2 and 3 has opposed the petition and

made the following submissions:

[7.1] It is submitted that the present petition filed under

Article 226 of the Constitution of India is not maintainable in view

of the efficacious alternative remedy available under Section 406 of

the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949 (for short,

"the G.P.M.C. Act").

[7.2] It is further submitted that the petitioner has not

specifically challenged the Tax Bill in the present petition. It is

pointed out that the Tax Bill issued in the year 2013 was

admittedly paid by the petitioner, which itself indicates acceptance

of the same at the relevant time. Even in the present proceedings,

the petitioner has not challenged the Tax Bill and in absence of

such challenge, the request made by the petitioner seeking

reconsideration and issuance of a fresh Tax Bill is not permissible in

law.

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[8] On the aforesaid grounds, learned advocate for the

respondents has urged that the present petition deserves to be

dismissed.

[9] Having heard the learned advocates for the respective

parties and having perused the material placed on record, it

emerges that a commercial Tax Bill was issued to the petitioner in

the year 2013 amounting to Rs.25,495/- and the same was

admittedly paid by the petitioner. It further appears that the

petitioner has not challenged the said Tax Bill in the present

petition.

[10] It is evident that the grievance raised by the petitioner

essentially pertains to the issuance of a commercial Tax Bill on the

premise that the property is being used for commercial purposes,

whereas according to the petitioner the premises is predominantly

used for residential purposes. Though the petitioner has not

expressly challenged the Tax Bill, the reliefs sought in the present

petition would, in effect, amount to questioning the validity of the

said bill. In such circumstances, the dispute raised by the petitioner

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squarely falls within the ambit of Section 406 of the G.P.M.C. Act,

which provides a statutory remedy by way of appeal before the

competent Court against the levy of municipal tax.

[11] In view of the availability of such efficacious alternative

remedy, this Court is not inclined to entertain the present petition

under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. The petition

therefore deserves to be dismissed on this ground alone.

[12] In view of the aforesaid, the present petition fails and is

accordingly dismissed. Notice is discharged.