Kerala High Court
Praveen K C vs Revenue Divisional Officer on 8 October, 2025
Author: C.S.Dias
Bench: C.S.Dias
2025:KER:74303
WP(C) NO. 28076 OF 2024
1
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE C.S.DIAS
WEDNESDAY, THE 8TH DAY OF OCTOBER 2025 / 16TH ASWINA, 1947
WP(C) NO. 28076 OF 2024
PETITIONER/S:
PRAVEEN K C,
AGED 35 YEARS
S/O CHANDRAN KS , KARYATTUKKARAN HOUSE, 15/00,
ELTHURUTH PO, THRISSUR DISTRICT, PIN - 678571
BY ADVS.
SHRI.SALEEK.C.A.
SHRI.THAREEK T.S.
SMT.ATHEENA V.G.
RESPONDENT/S:
1 REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER,
REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICE, PALAKKAD, PIN - 678001
2 VILLAGE OFFICER,
VILLAGE OFFICE MATHUR-2 PALLANCHATHANNUR
P.O.,PALAKKAD,KERALA, PIN - 678571
3 AGRICULTURE OFFICER ,
KRISHI BHAVAN, MATHUR-2 PALLANCHATHANNUR
P.O.KERALA, PIN - 678571
4 LOCAL LEVEL MONITORING COMMITTEE FOR THE MATHUR-2
GRAMA PANCHAYATH, UNDER THE CONSERVATION OF PADDY
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LAND AND WETLAND ACT, 2008
REPRESENTED BY ITS CONVENER, THE AGRICULTURE
OFFICER, KRISHI BHAVAN, VILLAGE OFFICE MATHUR-2
PALLANCHATHANNUR PALLANCHATHANNUR P.O. KERALA, PIN
- 678571
5 KERALA STATE REMOTE SENSING AND ENVIRONMENT
CENTRE,
REPRESENTED BY ITS DIRECTOR, 1ST FLOOR, VIKAS
BHAVAN, NEAR LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY, UNIVERSITY OF
KERALA, SENATE HOUSE CAMPUS, PMG, TRIVANDRUM, PIN
- 695033
SMT.JESSY S.SALIM, GP
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION
ON 08.10.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE
FOLLOWING:
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WP(C) NO. 28076 OF 2024
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C.S.DIAS, J.
---------------------------------------
W.P.(C) No. 28076 of 2024
-----------------------------------------
Dated this the 8th day of October, 2025
JUDGMENT
The petitioner is the owner in possession of 4.5
Ares of land comprised in Re-survey No.836/16 in Block
No.14 in Mathur-2 Village in Alathur Taluk, covered
under Ext.P2 land tax receipt. The property is a
converted land and is unsuitable for paddy cultivation.
Nevertheless, the respondents have erroneously
classified the property as 'paddy land' and included it in
the data bank maintained under the Kerala Conservation
of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008, and the Rules
framed thereunder ('Act' and 'Rules', for brevity). To
exclude the property from the data bank, the petitioner
had submitted Ext.P5 application in Form 5, under Rule
4(4d) of the Rules. However, by Ext.P6 order, the
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authorised officer has summarily rejected the application
without either conducting a personal inspection of the
land or calling for the satellite pictures as mandated
under Rule 4(4f) of the Rules. Furthermore, the order is
devoid of any independent finding regarding the nature
and character of the land as it existed on 12.08.2008 --
the date the Act came into force. The impugned order,
therefore, is arbitrary and unsustainable in law and
liable to be quashed.
2. I have heard the learned Counsel for the
petitioner and the learned Government Pleader.
3. The petitioner's principal contention is that the
applied property is not a cultivable paddy field but is a
converted plot. Nonetheless, the property has been
incorrectly included in the data bank. Despite filing the
Form 5 application, the authorised officer has rejected
the same without proper consideration or application of
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mind.
4. It is now well-settled by a catena of judgments of
this Court -- including the decisions in Muraleedharan
Nair R v. Revenue Divisional Officer [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 [2021 (1) KLT 433] -- that the authorised
officer is obliged to assess the nature, lie and character
of the land and its suitability for paddy cultivation as on
12.08.2008, which are the decisive criteria to determine
whether the property is to be excluded from the data
bank.
5. A reading of Ext.P6 order reveals that the
authorised officer has failed to comply with the statutory
requirements. There is no indication in the order that the
authorised officer has personally inspected the property
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or called for the satellite pictures as mandated under
Rule 4(4f) of the Rules. Instead, the authorised officer
has merely acted upon the report of the Agricultural
Officer without rendering any independent finding
regarding the nature and character of the land as on the
relevant date. There is also no finding whether the
exclusion of the property would prejudicially affect the
surrounding paddy fields. In light of the above findings, I
hold that the impugned order was passed in
contravention of the statutory mandate and the law laid
down by this Court. Thus, the impugned order is vitiated
due to errors of law and non-application of mind, and is
liable to be quashed. Consequently, the authorised
officer is to be directed to reconsider the Form 5
application as per the procedure prescribed under the
law.
In the circumstances mentioned above, I allow the
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writ petition in the following manner:
(i) Ext.P6 order is quashed.
(ii) The 1st respondent/authorised officer is directed to
reconsider the Form 5, in accordance with the law,
by either conducting a personal inspection of the
property or calling for the satellite pictures as
provided under Rule 4(4f) of the Rules, at the cost
of the petitioner.
(iii) If satellite pictures are called for, the application
shall be disposed of within three months from the
date of receipt of such pictures. On the other hand,
if the authorised officer opts to inspect the property
personally, the application shall be disposed of
within two months from the date of production of a
copy of this judgment by the petitioner.
The writ petition is thus ordered accordingly.
Sd/-
C.S.DIAS, JUDGE
dkr
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WP(C) NO. 28076 OF 2024
APPENDIX OF WP(C) 28076/2024
PETITIONER EXHIBITS
Exhibit P1 TRUE COPY OF THE SALE DEED NO.3325/2011,
DATED 13.12.2011, OF THE KUZHALMANNAM
S.R.O.
Exhibit P2 A TRUE COPY OF THE TAX RECEIPT DATED
15.05.2023 ISSUED FROM THE MATHUR II
VILLAGE OFFICE
Exhibit P3 TRUE COPY OF THE POSSESSION CERTIFICATE
DATED 25.03.2023 ISSUED FROM THE MATHUR
II VILLAGE OFFICE
Exhibit P4 PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE PROPERTY OF THE
PETITIONER
Exhibit P5 TRUE COPY OF THE APPLICATION IN FORM NO.5
DATED 15.05.2023 SUBMITTED BEFORE THE 1ST
RESPONDENT
Exhibit P6 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER BEARING FILE
NO.7227/2023 DATED 04.10.2023 ISSUED BY
THE 1ST RESPONDENT
