Mr. Sivanandan .B vs The Town Planning Officer
2021 Latest Caselaw 19198 Ker

         IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
                         PRESENT
           THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE N.NAGARESH
TUESDAY, THE 14TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2021 / 23RD BHADRA, 1943
                 WP(C) NO. 16721 OF 2021
PETITIONERS:

    1    SIVANANDAN .B,
         AGED 54 YEARS,
         TC-49/1061, NANDANAM, MADAVILA,
         POOZHIKUNNU IN.ESTATE.P.O,
         THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695019.
    2    SUNITHA.S,
         W/O.SIVANANDAN, TC-49/1061, NADANAM,
         MADAVILA, POOZHIKUNNU IN.ESTATE.P.O,
         THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695019.

         BY ADVS.
         SRI.ANOOP BHASKAR
         SRI.AMMU MANOHARAN NARAYANAN


RESPONDENTS:

    1    THE TOWN PLANNING OFFICER,
         CORPORATION OF THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,
         NEMOM ZONAL OFFICE,
         THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-695020.
    2    CORPORATION OF THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,
         VIKAS BHAVAN, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM -695033,
         REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY.
    3    THE SECRETARY,
         CORPOPORATION OF THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,
         VIKAS BHAVAN, THIRUVANANTHAPUYRAM-695033.

         BY ADVS.
         R1-3 BY SHRI.N.NANDAKUMARA MENON (SR.)
         R1-3 BY SHRI.P.K.MANOJKUMAR, SC, TVPM CORPORATION

     THIS WRIT PETITION    (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP       FOR
ADMISSION ON 14.09.2021,   THE COURT ON THE SAME        DAY
DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
 WP(C) No.16721/2021
                                :2 :




                        JUDGMENT

~~~~~~~~~

Dated this the 14th day of September, 2021

The petitioners are before this Court seeking to

quash Ext.P10 Stop Memo issued by the 2 nd respondent-

Corporation.

2. According to the petitioners, they are running a

Football and Cricket Turf. Licence is not required for running

a Sports Turf as per the rules existing in Kerala. The 2 nd

respondent-Corporation granted Ext.P7 ownership certificate

for the office building of the Turf being established by the

petitioners in the light of Ext.P8 approved plan and Ext.P9

order of regularisation. The Turf is a temporary structure with

Aluminium roofing and nets on its sides. To the surprise and

predicament of the petitioners, the Town Planning Officer of

the Corporation of Thiruvananthapuram issued Ext.P10 Stop

Memo directing the petitioners to stop the work of the Turf. WP(C) No.16721/2021

3. The petitioners would contend that Ext.P10 is

unsustainable for the reason that it has been issued under

Section 408 of the Kerala Municipalities Act and it has been

issued after the completion of the construction of the indoor

stadium. No proceedings under Section 408 can be initiated

after the construction. The only course available for the

respondents is to invoke Section 406. The learned counsel

for the petitioners would submit that Ext.P10 is unsustainable

and in violation of the principles of natural justice. The

petitioners were not granted a reasonable opportunity to

explain the true facts to the respondents. Ext.P10 Stop Memo

is issued only after construction, which is liable to be quashed,

granting liberty to the petitioners to defend Section 406

proceedings initiated by the Corporation, contended the

learned counsel for the petitioners.

4. The learned Senior Counsel assisted by the

learned Standing Counsel for the respondents submitted that

the writ petition is not maintainable at all and it is to be

dismissed at threshold for the reason that the petitioners have WP(C) No.16721/2021

an efficacious alternate remedy to file appeal before the

Tribunal for Local Self Government Institutions. The learned

Senior Counsel further pointed out that before issuing Stop

Memo under Section 408, no notice is warranted.

Subsequently, since the construction of the indoor stadium is

completed, the Corporation has passed provisional order

under Section 406. The petitioners can defend their case in

those proceedings. This writ petition is therefore anyway

misconceived and is liable to be dismissed.

5. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and

the learned Senior Counsel appearing for the respondents.

6. It is an admitted position that the Corporation has

issued Ext.P10 Stop Memo invoking Section 408 of the Kerala

Municipalities Act. It appears from Ext.P10 that the said

memo has been issued after completion of the construction of

indoor stadium. The concern of the petitioners is that since

Ext.P10 is unsustainable for the reason that it has been

issued after the construction, if Ext.P10 memo is not

successfully challenged, it may affect the case of the WP(C) No.16721/2021

petitioners including one in the pending proceedings under

Section 406.

7. This Court is of the considered opinion that since

the respondents have now initiated proceedings under Section

406 of the Kerala Municipalities Act, the petitioners will be

having ample opportunity to put forth their case and defend

their construction on whatever grounds available. Ext.P10

notice cannot hamper the right of the petitioners to defend

themselves in the pending proceedings under Section 406.

Recording the above finding, the writ petition is

dismissed as infructuous.

Sd/-

N. NAGARESH, JUDGE

aks/14.09.2021 WP(C) No.16721/2021

APPENDIX OF WP(C) 16721/2021

PETITIONER'S EXHIBITS:

Exhibit P1 TRUE COPY OF THE RECEIPT DATED 22.06.2021 Exhibit P2 TRUE COPY OF TAX RECEIPT DATED 04.08.2021 Exhibit P3 TRUE COPY OF THE CASE SUMMARY AND DISCHARGE RECORD OF SUNITHA.S ISSUED BY SREE CHITRA THIRUNAL INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCES, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Exhibit P4 TRUE COPY OF RECEIPT DATED 02.11.2021 ISSUED BY SREEKRISHNA FINANCE FOR AN AMOUNT OF RS.32,00,000/-

Exhibit P5 TRUE COPY OF RECEIPT ISSUED BY THE KARAMANA CO-OPERATIVE BANK LIMITED NO.1761 DATED 30.07.2021 Exhibit P5(A) TRUE COPY OF RECEIPT ISSEUD BY THE KARAMANA CO-OPERATIVE BANK LIMITED NO.1761 DATED 07.08.2021 Exhibit P6 TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPH OF THE TURF Exhibit P6(A) TRUE COPY OF PHOTOGRAPH OF THE TURF Exhibit P7 TRUE COPY OF THE OWNERSHIP CERTIFICATE DATED 19.04.2021 Exhibit P8 TRUE COPY OF APPROVED PLAN OF THE CONSTRUCTION IN 1.82,0.61,2.43 ARES IN RE-SY NO.721/31-1,721/41, 734/8-1 OF NEMOM VILLAGE Exhibit P9 TRUE COPY OF REGULARIZATION ORDER DATED 26.03.2021 Exhibit P10 TRUE COPY OF STOP MEMO DATED 29.07.2021 ISSUED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT Exhibit P11 THE TRUE COPY OF REPLY DATED 02.08.2021 SUBMITTED BEFORE THE 1ST RESPONDENT BY THE PETITIONERS Exhibit P11(A) TRUE COPY OF POSTAL RECEIPT DATED 02.08.2021 Exhibit P12 TRUE COPY OF APPLICATION FOR REGULARISATION SUBMITTED BY THE PETITIONERS BEFORE THE 3RD RESPONDENT DATED 06/08/2021 WP(C) No.16721/2021

Exhibit P12(A) TRUE COPY OF THE PLAN OF THE CONSTRUCTION IN 1.82,0.61, 2.43 ARES IN RE-SY NO.721/31-1, 721/41, 734/8-1 OF NEMOM VILLAGE Exhibit P12(B) TRUE COPY OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT RECEIPT DATED 06.08.2021.

SR