Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation vs Huku D. Karamchandani

J.C. Upadhyaya, J.—Challenge in this Appeal filed u/s 411 of the Bombay Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949 (''BPMC Act'', for short) is to the correctness of the judgment and order dated 2.7.1999 rendered in Municipal Valuation Appeal No. 910/1997 by the learned Judge, Small Causes Court No. 17, Ahmedabad by which the said Municipal Valuation Appeal filed by the Appellant was allowed and thereby the Gross Rateable Value of Property No. 4524/A/4/4/1 Tenament No. 211-0614 - 00-0/02-R of Shahpur 2-C Ward for the assessment year 1996-97, which was fixed by the Appellant - Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation at Rs. 42,007/- was reduced to Rs. 5950/ -.

Mr. Ritesh Soni, learned Advocate for the Appellant submitted that the order which is impugned in this Appeal is a printed and cryptic order without assigning any reason. Therefore, the same is required to be quashed and set-aside and the Municipal Valuation Appeal No. 910 of 1997 be restored and remanded to the files of the learned Judge, Small Causes Court, Ahmedabad for deciding the same afresh after giving ample opportunity of leading the evidence to both the parties strictly in accordance with law.

Mr. Narayan Karamchandani appearing for Huku D. Karamchandani the Respondent herein and party-in-person supported the impugned judgment and order rendered by the learned Small Causes Court, Ahmedabad and submitted that considering the valuation of the property at Rs. 84,996/ - the learned Judge has rightly fixed the GRV at Rs. 5950/ - and there is no reason whatsoever for this Appellate Court to interfere with the impugned judgment and order rendered by the learned Judge, Small Causes Court, Ahmedabad, and therefore, it is submitted that the Appeal may be dismissed.

We have considered the submissions advanced by Mr. Ritesh Soni, learned Advocate for the Appellant and the submission advanced by Mr. Narayan Karamchandani for Respondent Huku D. Karamchandani, the party in person so also the record and proceedings of M.V. Appeal No. 910 of 1997.

On perusal of the impugned judgment and order, it is seen that the same is on the printed form and only the blanks are filled up without assigning any reason. Therefore, the impugned judgment order deserves to be quashed and set-aside by allowing this Appeal and thereby restoring and remanding the Municipal Valuation Appeal No. 910 of 1997 to the files of the learned Judge, Small Causes Court, Ahmedabad for deciding the same afresh after giving ample opportunity of leading the evidence to both the parties strictly in accordance with law.

For the foregoing reasons, the Appeal succeeds and accordingly it is allowed. The order impugned in the Appeal is quashed and set-aside. The Municipal Valuation Appeal No. 910 of 1997 is restored and remanded to the files of the learned Judge, Small Causes Court, Ahmedabad for deciding the same afresh after giving ample opportunity of leading the evidence to both the parties strictly in accordance with law. No order as to cost.

Registry is directed to send the Record and Proceedings of M.V. Appeal No. 910 of 1997 to the Small Causes Court, Ahmedabad forthwith.

Since the above numbered First Appeal is allowed and Municipal Appeal No. 910 of 1997 is remanded to the files of the learned Judge, Small Causes, Court, Ahmedabad, the Civil Application No. 353 of 2000 filed by the Appellant herein, for stay of the impugned judgment and order as well as Civil Application Nos. 4260 of 2000 and 4630 of 2001 filed by the Respondent party in person now does not assume any survival value and hence, the same are disposed of accordingly with no order as to costs.