Kerala High Court
Balakrishnan K K vs Revenue Divisional Officer on 23 June, 2025
Author: C.S.Dias
Bench: C.S.Dias
WP(C) NO. 10550 OF 2025 1
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE C.S.DIAS
MONDAY, THE 23RD DAY OF JUNE 2025 / 2ND ASHADHA, 1947
WP(C) NO. 10550 OF 2025
PETITIONERS:
1 BALAKRISHNAN K K,
AGED 58 YEARS
S/O PARUKUTTY NANGIAR, RESIDING AT SREENILAYAM HOUSE,
ENKEKKAD PO, ENKEKKAD VILLAGE, THALAPPILLY TALUK
THRISSUR DT., PIN - 680589
2 MANJULA T V,
AGED 49 YEARS
W/O.BALAKRISHNAN K K, RESIDING AT SREENILAYAM HOUSE,
ENKEKKAD PO, ENKEKKAD VILLAGE,
THALAPPILLY,TALUK,THRISSUR DT., PIN - 680589
BY ADVS.
SRI.SHOBY K.FRANCIS
SMT.AGI SHOBY
SMT.TINU WILSON
RESPONDEN/S:
1 REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER,
OFFICE OF THE RDO, AYYANTHOLE PO,COLLECTORATE,
THRISSUR, PIN - 680003
2 DEPUTY COLLECTOR (RR) [ RDO UNDER SEC. 2(XVA)
OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY COLLECTOR, COLLECTORATE,
AYYANTHOLE PO, THRISSUR., PIN - 680003
3 TAHSILDAR/ADDL. TAHSILDAR [LAND RECORDS],
KUNNAMKULAM TALUK, TALUK OFFICE, WADAKANCHERY PO,
THRISSUR DT., PIN - 680582
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4 VILLAGE OFFICER,
THAYYOOR VILLAGE, THAYYOOR PO, THRISSUR DT.- 680584
5 LOCAL LEVEL MONITORING COMMITTEE [LLMC] OF ERUMAPETTY
GRAMA PANCHAYATH,
REPRESENTED BY ITS CONVENER [AGRICULTURAL OFFICER],
KRISHI BHAVAN ERUMAPETTY, ERUMAPETTY P O,
THRISSUR DT., PIN - 680584
6 AGRICULTURAL OFFICER,
KRISHI BHAVAN ERUMAPETTY, ERUMAPETTY P O, THRISSUR DT.,
PIN - 680584
7 STATE OF KERALA,
REPRESENTED BY ITS PRINCIPAL SECRETARY TO THE GOVT.
REVENUE DEPARTMENT, GOVT.
SECRETARIAT,THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695001
GP SMT JESSY S SALIM
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON
23.06.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
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JUDGMENT
Dated this the 23rd day of June, 2025
The writ petition is filed to quash Ext.P3 order and
direct the 2nd respondent to re-consider the Form 5
application submitted by the petitioners under Rule 4(4d)
of the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland
Rules, 2008 ('Rules' in short).
2. The petitioners' are the co-owner of property
having a total extent of 10.12 Ares of land comprised in
Survey No.151/PT1 of Thayyoor Village, Kunnamkulam
Taluk, Thrissur District, covered by Ext.P1 land tax
receipt. The petitioners' property is a converted land and
it is not suitable for paddy cultivation. The respondents
have erroneously classified the same as 'paddy land' and
included it in the data bank. To exclude the property from
the data bank, the petitioners' had submitted a Form 5
application before the 2nd respondent. But, by the
impugned Ext.P3 order, the 2nd respondent has rejected
the Form 5 application, without any application of mind.
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Ext.P3 order is illegal and arbitrary. Hence, the writ
petition.
3. Heard; the learned counsel for the petitioners'
and the learned Government Pleader.
4. The petitioners' specific case is that, their
property is a converted land and is not suitable for paddy
cultivation. Even though they had filed a Form 5
application before the 2nd respondent, the same has been
rejected, without directly inspecting the property or calling
for the satellite images as envisaged under Rule 4(4f) of
the Rules.
5. In a plethora of judicial precedents, this Court
has held that, it is the nature, lie, character and fitness of
the land, and whether the land is suitable for paddy
cultivation as on 12.08.2008 i.e., the date of coming into
force of the Act, are the relevant criteria to be ascertained
by the Revenue Divisional Officer to exclude a property
from the data bank (read the decisions of this Court in
Muraleedharan Nair R v. Revenue Divisional Officer
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(2023(4) KHC 524), Sudheesh U v. The Revenue
Divisional Officer, Palakkad (2023 (2) KLT 386) and Joy
K.K v. The Revenue Divisional Officer/Sub Collector,
Ernakulam and others (2021 (1) KLT 433)).
6. Ext.P3 order substantiates that the 2 nd
respondent has not directly inspected the property or
called for the satellite images as envisaged under the
Rules. The 2nd respondent has also not rendered any
independent finding regarding the nature and character of
the petitioner's property as on 12.08.2008, or whether the
removal of the petitioners' property from the data bank
would adversely affect the paddy cultivation in the locality.
A reading of Ext.P3 shows that, the satellite images that
were relied on by the 1st respondent pertain to the period
at the time of preparation of the data bank. The said
report cannot be relied on, in view of Rule 4(4f) of the
Rules. Thus, I am satisfied that Ext.P3 order is liable to be
quashed and the 2nd respondent/authorised officer be
directed to reconsider the Form 5 application submitted by
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the petitioners, in accordance with law, after adverting to
the principles of law laid down in the aforesaid decisions
and the materials available on record.
In the result, the writ petition is allowed in the
following manner:
(i). Ext.P3 order is quashed.
(ii). The 2nd respondent/authorised officer is
directed to reconsider Form 5 application, in
accordance with law. It would be up to the
authorised officer to either directly inspect the
property or call for satellite images as per the
procedure provided under Rule 4(4f) at the expense
of the petitioner.
(iii) If the authorised officer calls for the
satellite images, he shall consider Form 5
application, in accordance with law and as
expeditiously as possible, at any rate, within three
months from the date of the receipt of the satellite
images. However, if he directly inspects the
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property, he shall dispose of the application within
two months from the date of production of a copy of
this judgment.
The writ petition is ordered accordingly.
Sd/-
C.S.DIAS, JUDGE
AJ
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APPENDIX OF WP(C) 10550/2025
PETITIONER EXHIBITS
Exhibit P-1 A TRUE COPY OF THE BASIC TAX RECEIPT DATED
21-9-2023 ISSUED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT TO THE
PETITIONERS
Exhibit P-2 A TRUE COPY OF THE ROUGH SKETCH OF THE
PETITIONER'S PROPERTY DATED NIL.
Exhibit P-3 A TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 15-11-2024 IN
PROCEEDINGS FILE NO. 671/2024 AND IN
APPLICATION NO. 15/2024/105863 PASSED BY THE
2ND RESPONDENT
Exhibit P-4 A COLOR PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE PROPERTY DATED NIL
COVERED BY EXHIBITS P-2 AND P-3
