Kerala High Court
K Suresh Kumar vs The District Collector on 22 September, 2025
Author: C.S.Dias
Bench: C.S.Dias
WP(C) NO. 26442 OF 2025 1 2025:KER:70553
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE C.S.DIAS
MONDAY, THE 22ND DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2025 / 31ST BHADRA, 1947
WP(C) NO. 26442 OF 2025
PETITIONER:
K SURESH KUMAR
AGED 55 YEARS
S/O. KUNJURAMAN, NEW BOAG ROAD, 76/35, NADUKANDY
HOUSE, THIYAGARAYA NAGAR, CHENNAI, PIN - 600017
BY ADVS.
SHRI.N.KRISHNA RAJA MAULI
SMT.MINI.K.NAIR
RESPONDENTS:
1 THE DISTRICT COLLECTOR
CIVIL STATION, CIVIL STATION P.O KOZHIKODE, PIN -
673020
2 THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER
VADAKARA REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICE, OPP. GOVERNMENT
PWD REST HOUSE, OLD BUS STAND PUTHIYAPPU, VADAKARA
KOZHIKODE, PIN - 673101
3 THE DEPUTY COLLECTOR (DM)
CIVIL STATION, CIVIL STATION P.O KOZHIKODE, PIN -
673020
4 THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER
THIKKODI COCONUT NURSERY, THIKKODI KOZHIKODE, PIN -
673529
5 THE VILLAGE OFFICER
THIKKODI VILLAGE OFFICE, THIKKODI PANCHAYATH BAZAR
BEACH ROAD, KOZHIKODE, PIN - 673529
WP(C) NO. 26442 OF 2025 2 2025:KER:70553
6 THE DIRECTOR
KERALA STATE REMOTE SENSING AND ENVIRONMENT CENTRE,
VIKAS BHAVAN, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695033
GP.SMT.DEEPA V., SC- SRI.VISHNU S. CHEMPAZHANTHIYIL
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON
22.09.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
WP(C) NO. 26442 OF 2025 3 2025:KER:70553
C.S.DIAS, J.
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WP(C) No. 26442 OF 2025
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Dated this the 22nd day of September, 2025
JUDGMENT
The petitioner is the owner in possession of 3 Ares
and 51 Square meters of land comprised in Re-survey
No.88/40 of Thikkodi Village, Koyilandy Taluk, covered
under Ext.P1 land tax receipt. The property is a converted
land and is unsuitable for paddy cultivation. Nevertheless,
the respondents have erroneously classified the property
as 'wetland' 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.P4
application in Form 5, under Rule 4(4d) of the Rules.
However, by Ext.P5 order, the authorised officer has
summarily rejected the application without either
conducting a personal inspection of the land or calling for
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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 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
WP(C) NO. 26442 OF 2025 5 2025:KER:70553
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.P5 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 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
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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 writ
petition in the following manner:
(i) Ext.P5 order is quashed.
(ii) The 2nd respondent/authorised officer is directed
to reconsider the Ext.P4 application, 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
WP(C) NO. 26442 OF 2025 7 2025:KER:70553
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
SCB
WP(C) NO. 26442 OF 2025 8 2025:KER:70553
APPENDIX OF WP(C) 26442/2025
PETITIONER EXHIBITS
Exhibit P1 THE TRUE COPY OF THE LAND TAX RECEIPT NO.
KL11020302030/2024 DATED 08.04.2024
Exhibit P2 TRUE COPY OF THE POSSESSION CERTIFICATE OF
THE SUBJECT PROPERTY DATED ON 24.4.2024
Exhibit P3 THE TRUE COPY OF THE EXTRACT OF THE
PUBLISHED DATA BANK OF THIKKODI GRAMA
PANCHAYATH
Exhibit P4 THE TRUE COPY OF THE FORM 5 APPLICATION
DATED 10/01/2023
Exhibit P5 THE TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER OF THE 2ND
RESPONDENT IN ORDER NO. 4837/2023 DATED
9.12.2023
Exhibit P6 THE REPORT OF THE 4TH RESPONDENT, THE
AGRICULTURAL OFFICER DATED ON 29.04.2023
Exhibit P7 THE TRUE COPY OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS
