In the impugned order passed by the division bench, which is the subject matter of the S.L.P. C , No.
The division bench, however, upheld the demand for drainage tax and lightning rate as well as graduated flat rate.
24.8.1973 till 31st March, 1976 to be illegal.
We will first numberice the factual position about the various bye laws and the resolution passed by the Municipal Corporation in relation to these taxes and the cess.
By the Act No.
1.50 per cent or such rate as may from time to time be fixed by the Corporation in accordance with the provisions of Section 138 of the Act and the assessment shall be done in the manner laid down for assessment of property tax in Sections 139 to 159 of the Act.
Consequently, the division bench partly allowed the writ petition.
14 of 1964 or the rules made thereunder, and in force for the purpose of that Act immediately before the 1st day of April, 1976 shall be deemed to be the annual value for the assessment of property tax on such land or building under this Act, until such time as the Commissioner makes a fresh valuation and determines annual value under this Act of the land and buildings therein and the annual value of such land or buildings shall remain unchanged for a period of one year and may be revised thereafter by the Commissioner at the termination of successive period of one year.
The basis for determination of the annual rental value was stated to be the annual property value assessed by the Municipal Corporation or State Government from time to time and the drainage tax shall be imposed on same basis.
926 dated 11th March, 1970 proposing to impose lighting rate at the rate of Rs.
The General sanitary cess had been introduced by the Indore Municipal Corporation w.e.f.
They appear at pages 115 to 119 of the paper book of the S.L.P. The final bye laws in relation to general sanitary cess, however, came to be published in the prescribed manner only on 9th January, 1976.
Similarly, in relation to lighting rate the Corporation passed the resolution No.
They are called Indore Municipal Lightning Rate Assessment, Collection and Refund Bye laws 1974.
But the final bye laws in relation to drainage tax came to be published only on 12.2.1976 from which date they became enforceable and as translated are called Indore Municipal Corporation Drainage Tax Assessment, Collection and Refund Bye laws, 1975 hereinafter referred to as the Drainage Bye laws 1975 .
No resolutions giving option of basis for assessment on either of annual letting value fixed by the Corporation or State were passed for imposition of general sanitary cess.
At the time when these taxes were imposed the Corporation was prohibited from imposing properly tax and the annual letting value of the building or land was thus number being determined under the Act for levying property tax.
The assessment under these bye laws is to be made on the basis of the annual letting value of any building or land at the rate of 2 per cent prepared in accordance with the provisions of Section 138 of the Act.
This resolution was companyfirmed by order No.
924 dated 10th March, 1970.
The position thus boils down to this that the bye laws in relation to lightning rate came into force on 24.5.1974, general sanitary cess on 9.1.1976 and drainage tax on 12.2.1976.
With effect from 1.4.1976 Section 143 was added to the Act which provides as under Section.
3 of 1971.
The lightning tax was directed to be imposed on same basis.
v. The Indore Municipal Corporation and Ors.
From 1st April, 1971 to 31st March, 1976 the State alone recovered the property tax as a prohibition for local bodies from imposing property tax was introduced in Section 36 of the Adhiniyam by Act No.
The drainage tax and the lighting rate came into force on 1st April, 1971.
On the same basis the impugned order dated 2.3.1979 in C.A.No.
when the objections received to the proposal were companysidered and it was decided to impose the drainage tax as per the order of the Corporation vide resolution No.
253 of 1974 filed by the Madhya Pradesh Awas Samasya Nivaran Sanstha and Anr.
The basis of rental value was to be determined from the annual rental value assessed by the Municipal Corporation of State Government from time to time.
This position companytinued till 1st April, 1976 when the Corporation again got the power to impose property tax.
Heard.
It appears that before the aforesaid bye laws were made effective in relation to drainage tax the resolution No.
The Draft General Sanitary Cess Bye laws 1973 appear at pages 115 to 119 of the paper book of the S.L.P. but the final bye laws as published in the Gazette on 9.1.1976 are number part of the paper book.
10376 of 1981 the learned division bench was companycerned with the legality of the demand for drainage tax and lighting rate, general sanitary cess and the validity of graduated flat rate.
On this ground the aforesaid demands made in annexure J M as filed in the writ petition was quashed by the learned Single Judge.
Assessment of annual value and duration of assessment.
To the extent the division bench declined the relief, the petitioners have filed the Special leave Petition.
50 of 1976, Section 36 was deleted from the Adhiniyam and the areas within the Municipal Corporation limits were taken out from the operation of the Adhiniyam.
The resolutions of the Corporation companyld thus hold the field by providing a method of assessment till 12.2.1976.
Special Leave granted.
The draft bye laws for the general sanitary cess are called the Indore Municipal Corporation General Sanitary Cess assessment, companylection and refund Bye laws, 1973 hereinafter referred to as the Draft General Sanitary Cess Bye laws, 1973 .
The learned Single Judge quashed the demand on the ground that the basis of the demand were illegal.
The Government levied the property tax under the Adhiniyam whereas the Municipal Corporation levied it under the Act.
2377 and 2378 of 1980 have been filed against two separate judgments of the learned Single Judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court dated 2.3.1979 by the Indore Municipal Corporation.
The division bench found the general sanitary cess in force w.e.f.
491 dated 26.10.1970?
The general sanitary cess were enforced from 1.4.1973 but the byelaws in relation thereto were finally approved and published only on 9.1.1976.
The proposal had mentioned that the drainage tax shall be levied at the rate of 1 1/2 per cent after deducting 10 per cent as maintenance charges on the basis of annual letting value.
1.4.1973.
v. The Indore Municipal Corporation and Ors.
So from 1st April, 1976 the Municipal Corporations are alone recovering the property tax within their local areas.
Thus the Corporation while providing the system of assessment for various taxes can propose a basis but after the bye laws provided the system of assessment, the Corporation has to abide by that system of assessment.
It may be mentioned that from 1964 to 31st March, 1970 the property tax was levied both by the Government and the local bodies such as the Municipal Corporation.
For appreciating the points involved in the cases it will be necessary to refer to the relevant provisions of the Act and the bye laws framed under the Act and the provisions of the Adhiniyam.
The draft bye laws were called Indore Municipal Corporation Draft Drainage Tax Assessment, Collection, Refund Bye laws 1973 hereinafter referred to as the Draft Drainage Tax Bye laws, 1973 .
It was held that the drainage tax and lightning rate under the Act is to be assessed in accordance with the annual letting value determined under Section 138 of the Act and that the assessment of the said rate and tax with reference to the annual value determined under the Adhiniyam was illegal and companysequently the bill served on the writ petitioner was liable to be quashed.
So far as the drainage tax is companycerned, there were numberbye laws till 12.2.1976.
The relevant bye law for assessment of lightning rate is bye law No.
The annual value of any land or building situate within the city as determined under the Madhya Pradesh Nagariya Sthawar Sampatti Kar Adhiniyam, 1964 No.
4 thereof companytemplates that the assessment of drainage tax on the annual letting value of any building or land at the rate of Rs.
The Commissioner may, instead of making a new assessment every year, adopt the existing assessment, with such alteration as he thinks fit, as the assessments for each new year, giving to persons affected by such alterations the same numberice of the altered valuation and assessment as would have been required if a new assessment had been prepared.
The bye laws in relation to lighting rate were published by a Notification dated 18th April, 1974 in the Madhya Pradesh Gazette dated 24th May, 1974 and came into effect from date of publication.
Bye law No.
We have already referred to the proposals that were finally approved by the Administrator for imposition of these taxes as well as the rate of such taxes and also the basis being the annual letting value as determined by the Corporation of the State Government for imposition of property tax from time to time.
The proposed bye laws in relation to drainage tax are at pages 97 to 99 but the final bye laws in relation to drainage tax were number filed with the appear book.
The basis for companyputing these taxes is given in the bye laws but the bye laws become effective only on their publication in the Gazette.
Thus before the bye laws became effective the resolutions of the Corporation Administrator held the field.
The petitioners in this Special Leave Petition have challenged the decision relating to drainage tax, lighting rate and graduated flat rate and have relied upon the decision of learned Single Bench which is the subject matter of C.A. 2377 of 1980.
Consequently, the division bench quashed the demand for general sanitary cess.
There is thus a distinction between general sanitary cess on the one hand and drainage tax and lightning rate on the other.
The general sanitary cess had been levied at the rate of 2 per cent on the annual letting value of the house property under Section 132 1 c of the Act which enabled the Corporation to impose general sanitary cess for the companystruction and maintenance of public latrines for the removal and disposal of refuse.
2378, was passed by the learned Single Judge where the writ petition was filed to quash a demand No.
0.40 p. on the remaining amount of letting value after deducting 10 per cent maintenance charges from it.
In the aforesaid bill dated 26th October, 1971 the demand related to lightning rate and drainage tax for the year 1971 72 see page 30 of the paper book and demand numberice dated 14.8.1973 inter alia related to lightning rate and drainage tax in respect of arrears and current dues up to 31.3.1974 see page 36 37 of the paper book .
We may number deal with the decision of the division bench in relation to the imposition of water rate known as graduated flat rate.
1.4.1971.
and the impugned order in C.A. 2378 of 1980 was passed in Miscellaneous Petition No.
172 of 1980.
2, Gaya Prasad Sahu in the writ petition in respect of house No.
25, Mohalla Vallabh Nagar, Indore for the period companymencing from 1971 72.
121, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Indore for the period companymencing from 1973 74.
925 dated 10th march, 1970 was passed by the Corporation proposing to levy drainage tax at a particular rate on a particular basis.
492 dated 26.10.1970 by the Administrator.
10376 of 1981 has been filed by M s. M.T. Cloth Market Merchants Association against the Indore Municipal Corporation and others against the judgment of a division bench of the High Court dated 25.7.1981 in Miscellaneous Petition No.
In C.A. 2377 of 1980 the order impugned, on behalf of the respondents in the writ petition, was a bill dated 26th October, 1971 filed as annexure J to the writ petition and a demand numberice dated 14.8.1973 filed as annexure M to the writ petition by which a demand for payment of lighting rate and drainage tax had been made by Indore Municipal Corporation from petitioner No.
Yogeshwar Dayal, J. This order will dispose of C.A. 2377 an 2379 of 1980 and S.L.P. C 10376 of 1981.
The relevant bye law for assessment of general sanitary cess is bye law No.
The impugned order in C.A. 2377 of 1980 was passed in Civil Miscellaneous Petition No.
The division bench in the impugned judgment approved the decision of the Single Judge which is subject matter of C.A. 2378 of 1980 but dissented from the decision of the same learned Single Judge, which is the subject matter of C.A. 2377 of 1980.
855 dated 8.2.1974 annexure H to the writ petition in relation to general sanitary cess made by the Indore Municipal Corporation from the writ petitioner No.
781 of 1974 filed by Gujarati Co operative Housing Society Ltd. and Anr.
The drainage tax was, however, levied by the Corporation w.e.f.
The demand for lightning rate and drainage tax had been made on the basis of annual letting value of the writ petitioners property calculated in accordance with the annual letting values prepared by the State Government under the provisions of Madhya Pradesh Sthawar Sampatti Kar Adhiniyam, 1964 hereinafter referred to as the Adhiniyam and number in accordance with the mode prescribed in Section 138 of the Act even though those taxes have been imposed under Section 132 of the Act.
The S.L.P. C No.
The annual letting value of the house property was the base for calculation of the cess from the property owner and in this case also the annual letting value on the basis of which the demand was made was in accordance with the provisions of the Adhiniyam and number in accordance with the mode prescribed under Section 138 of the Act even though the cess had been imposed under Section 132 1 c of the Act.
