Karnataka High Court
M/S Shri Ushoodaya Builders vs The State Of Karnataka on 23 June, 2025
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WP No. 46628 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.46628 OF 2019 (LB-BMP)
BETWEEN:
1. M/S. SHRI USHOODAYA BUILDERS
A PARTNERSHIP FIRM
HAVING ITS OFFICE AT
NO.177, 40 FEET ROAD
GREEN GLEN LAYOUT
BELLANDUR, BENGALURU-560 103
REPRESENTED BY ITS PARTNER AND
AUTHORISED SIGNATORY SRI R DEEPAK
S/O N RANGAPPA
AGED ABOUT 46 YEARS.
...PETITIONER
Digitally
signed by H (BY SRI. G S VENKAT SUBBA RAO, ADVOCATE)
K HEMA
Location: AND:
HIGH
COURT OF 1. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA
KARNATAKA
BY ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY
DEPARTMENT OF URBAN DEVELOPMENT
VIDHANA SOUDHA
BENGALURU-560 001.
2. THE COMMISSIONER
BRUHATH BENGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE
N R SQUARE
BENGALURU-560 001.
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3. THE JOINT DIRECTOR
(TOWN PLANNING, NORTH)
BRUHATH BENGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE
N R SQUARE
BENGALURU-560 001.
...RESPONDENTS
(BY SRI. BOPANNA B., AGA FOR R.1 AND R.3;
SRI ASHWIN S HALADY, ADVOCATE FOR R.2.)
THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226
AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO
QUASH THE DEMAND NOTICE DT: 29/8/2019, BEARING NO.
BBMP/ADDL.DIR/JD NORTH/LP/0431/2012-13, ISSUED BY 3RD
RESPONDENT, THE JOINT DIRECTOR, (TOWN PLANNING
NORTH), BBMP, N.R. CIRCLE, BENGALURU-560002, VIDE
ANNEXURE-A, 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
ORAL ORDER
The captioned petition is filed seeking for the
following reliefs:
"WHEREFORE under circumstances, the Petitioner
above named prays that this Hon'ble Court be
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pleased to issue a writ in the nature of Certiorari or
any other writ, order or direction
(a) Quashing the Demand Notice Dt: 29/8/2019,
bearing No. BBMP/Addl.Dir/JD North/LP/0431/
2012-13, issued by 3rd Respondent, the Joint
Director, (Town Planning North), BBMP, N. R.
Circle, Bengaluru-560002, vide Annexure-A;
(b) Quashing the Circular dated: 21/9/2017 bearing
No. Mu.Le.Aa/PR/GST-01/2017-18, issued by the
2nd Respondent i.e., The Commissioner, Bruhat
Bangalore Mahanagara Palike, vide Annexure-B;
(c) Issue such writ in the nature of Mandamus
directing the respondents not to insist/demand
the petitioner for the payment of Ground rent for
issuance approved plan in favour of petitioner in
view of the Annexure-B. and grant such other
reliefs;
(d) declare that the BBMP has no authority to collect
the taxes under the guise of collection of ground
rent and other fee under various heads, without
sanction by the Government;
(e) declare that the ground rent levied on the
petitioner for obtaining approved plan is bad in
law, since the petitioner is not using the public
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land/property for stocking of building materials
for construction purposes;
(f) Pass such other orders including the order as to
costs as this Hon'ble Court deems fit to grant
under the circumstances of the case, in the
interest of justice and equity."
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.
Therefore, this Court deems it fit to cull out the operative
portion of the order, which reads as under;
"O R D E R
(a) All the Writ Petitions are allowed.
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(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 bearing
No.ºÉ¤£ÀAiÉÆÃ/eÉ.r(G)/rJªÀiï3/¦Dgï/320/2015-16 dated
04.09.2015 stands quashed.
(d) The Circular bearing No.£ÀCE 36 ¨ÉªÀÄ¥Áæ 2016
(¨sÁUÀ) dated 27.01.2017 and the Circular bearing No.
ºÉ¤£ÀAiÉÆÃ/¦Dgï/1533/2016-17 dated 30.03.2017
demanding Lake Rejuvenation Fee are quashed.
(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.
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(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.
(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 for refund, the BBMP shall pass
appropriate orders within 12 weeks from the date
of such representations.
In view of disposal of the petitions, all
pending Interlocutory Applications also stand 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
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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, 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
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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 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;
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ORDER
(i) The writ petition is allowed.
(ii) The impugned demand notice dated
29.08.2019 issued by respondent No.3 as
per Annexure-A is hereby set-aside.
(iii) Respondent- BBMP is hereby
directed to issue fresh/modified plan as the
case may be.
(iv) Respondent- BBMP is hereby
directed to issue Occupancy certificate in
accordance with law in compliance of the
construction strictly adhering to the
approved building plan.
(v) Respondent- BBMP is hereby directed
to forthwith process the petitioner's
application seeking building license, sanction
of the building plan and occupancy
certificate , strictly in accordance with law.
(vi) It is made clear that the issuance of
the building license, approval plan and
occupancy certificate shall not be withheld
merely on the ground that the BBMP is
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contemplating to file an appeal against the
reported judgment.
(vii) If the building license, sanction plan
and occupancy certificate 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
