- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 23RD DAY OF JUNE, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM WRIT PETITION NO.9341 OF 2021 (LB-BMP) BETWEEN: 1. SALARPURIA BUILDERS PRIVATE LIMITED A COMPANY INCORPORATED UNDER THE COMPANIES ACT, 1956, HAVING ITS OFFICE AT 4TH FLOOR, SALARPURIA WINDSOR, NO.3, ULSOOR ROAD, BANGALORE-560042 REPRESENTED BY ITS AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE MR. ASHWIN SANCHETI, S/O MANOHARCHAND SANCHETI, AGED ABOUT 41 YEARS. …PETITIONER (BY SRI. ANUPARNA BORDOLOI, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. THE STATE OF KARNATAKA DEPARTMENT OF TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING, REPRESENTED BY ITS CHIEF SECRETARY, VIDHANA SOUDHA, BENGALURU-560001. 2. THE COMMISSIONER BRUHAT BENGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE, N R SQUARE, Digitally signed by H K HEMA Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 BENGALURU-560002. 3. THE JOINT DIRECTOR OF TOWN PLANNING (NORTH) N R SQUARE, HEAD OFFICE BUILDING, ANNEX BUILDING, BRUHAT BENGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE, BANGALORE-560002. 4. THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR (TOWN PLANNING) BRUHAT BENGALURU MAHANAGARA PALIKE, N R SQUARE, BANGALORE-560002. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. H.K. KENCHEGOWDA, AGA FOR R.1, R.3 AND R.4; SRI S.N. PRASHANTH CHANDRA, ADVOCATE FOR R.2) THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO QUASH THE DEMAND NOTICE NO.BBMP/ADDL.DIR/JD NORTH/0021/18-19 DATED 20.04.2021 ISSUED BY RESPONDENT NO.3 SO FAR AS IT DIRECTS THE PETITIONER HEREIN TO PAY A SUM OF RS.4,10.794/- (FOUR LAKH TEN THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED NINETY FOUR ONLY) TOWARDS GROUND RENT AND GST ON GROUND RENT AMOUNT CALCULATED AT 18% AMOUNTING TO RS.73,943/- (SEVENTY THREE THOUSAND NINE HUNDRED FORTY THREE ONLY) TOTALING TO RS.4,84,737/- (RUPEES FOUR LAKHS EIGHTY- FOUR THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SEVEN ONLY) (ANNEXURE A), ETC. - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING IN 'B' GROUP, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR JUSTICE SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM ORAL ORDER The captioned petition is filed seeking for the following reliefs: "Wherefore, it is prayed that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to: a) Issue a Writ quashing the demand notice no BBMP/Addl.Dir/JD North/0021/18-19 dated 20.04.2021 issued by Respondent No. 3 so far as it directs the Petitioner herein to pay a sum of Rs.4,10,794/- (Four Lakh Ten Thousand Seven Hundred Ninety Four only) towards ground rent and GST on ground rent amount calculated at 18% amounting to Rs.73,943/- (Seventy Three Thousand Nine Hundred Forty Three only) totaling to Rs.4,84,737/- (Rupees Four lakhs eighty-four thousand seven hundred and thirty-seven only) (Annexure A) - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 b) Issue a writ declaring that the action of the Respondent No. 3 in insisting on payment a sum of Rs.4,10, 794/- (Four Lakh Ten Thousand Seven Hundred Ninety Four only) towards ground rent and GST on ground rent amount calculated at 18% amounting to Rs.73,943/- (Seventy Three Thousand Nine Hundred Forty Three only) totaling to Rs.4,84,737/- (Rupees Four lakhs eighty-four thousand seven hundred and thirty-seven only) under the demand notice no BBMP/Addl. Dir/JD North/0021/18-19 dated 20.04.2021 as highly arbitrary and illegal. (Annexure A) c) Issue a writ declaring that the labour cess amount is also liable to be proportionately reduced in the impugned demand notice no BBMP/Addl. Dir/JD North/0021/18-19 dated 20.04.2021 as the petitioner is not liable to pay the ground rent. (Annexure A) d) Issue a writ setting aside the circular no HE NI N YO/J.D.(U)/DM3/PR/320/2015- 16 dated 04.09.2015 issued by the 2nd - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 respondent for calculating the ground rent, Vide Annexure-B e) Issue a writ directing the respondent no. 3 to issue modified plan sanction/license without insisting on the payment of the Ground Rent and GST by the petitioner. f) Issue a writ declaring the ground rent levied on the petitioner for obtaining modified, plan sanction/license is bad in law, since the petitioner is not using the public land/property for stocking of building materials for construction purpose. g) Grant such other relief that this Hon'ble Court may deem fit in the facts and circumstances of the above case." 2. It is brought to the notice of this Court that across the Bar, the issue is dealt by the Co-ordinate Bench in the reported judgment in W.P.No.23086/2022 and connected matters. The Co-ordinate Bench, while deciding the issue, has set-aside the Karnataka Municipal Corporations and Certain Other Law (Amendment) Act, - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 2021 (Karnataka Act No.01 of 2022) and the Karnataka Municipal Corporations and Certain Other Law (Amendment) Act, 2023, (Karnataka Act No.37 of 2024). Therefore, this Court deems it fit to cull out the operative portion of the order, which reads as under; "ORDER (i) The writ petitions are partly allowed. (ii) The Karnataka Municipal Corporations and Certain Other Law (Amendment) Act, 2021 (Karnataka Act No.01 of 2022), is hereby quashed and set aside. (iii) The Karnataka Municipal Corporations and Certain Other Law (Amendment) Act, 2023, (Karnataka Act No.37 of 2024), is hereby quashed and set aside. (iv) It is hereby declared that the provisions contained in Section 18-A of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, 1961, read with Rules 37-A and 37-C of the Karnataka Planning Authority Rules, 1965, are applicable only in respect of ‘Development Plan’ containing the proposal for construction on plots measuring more than 20,000 - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 square meters in extent and not in respect of plots measuring less than 20,000 square meters. (v) It is hereby declared that if fee has been earlier collected for change of land use or while approving a layout plan, fee shall not be collected for subsequent ‘Development Plan’ in terms of the ‘Note’ found below TABLE I of Rule 37-A of the Karnataka Planning Authority Rules, 1965. (vi) It is hereby declared that the linking of the fee leviable under Rule 37-A of the Karnataka Planning Authority Rules, 1965, to the ‘market value’ or ‘guidance value’ as determined under Section 45-B of the Karnataka Stamp Act, 1957, is illegal. However, liberty is reserved to the respondent-State Government and the BBMP to re- fix a standard after collecting empherical data. (vii) Consequently, all the impugned Circulars which seek to give effect to the Rules 37-A and 37- C of the Karnataka Planning Authority Rules, 1965, are hereby quashed and set aside. (viii) It is hereby declared that Clause 3.8 of the Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike Building Bye- laws, 2003, providing for ‘Ground Rent’, is illegal and are accordingly quashed and set aside. - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 (ix) Consequently, all the impugned Demand Notices raised by the respondent-BBMP, in respect of the writ petitioners herein are also quashed and set aside. It would be advisable that the BBMP may come out with a scheme for ‘One Time Settlement’ and settle the levy and collect the fee generally acceptable to the citizens of Bengaluru. This would also augment the present situation." 3. In the present writ petition, the core issue raised stands substantially covered and decided by the authoritative pronouncement of the coordinate bench, wherein the writ petitions were partly allowed and several consequential reliefs were granted. The Hon’ble Court, in unequivocal terms, quashed and set aside the Karnataka Municipal Corporations and Certain Other Law (Amendment) Acts of 2021 and 2023 (Karnataka Act Nos.01 of 2022 and 37 of 2024 respectively). 4. The Court further declared that the provisions under Section 18-A of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, 1961, read with Rules 37-A and 37-C of the Karnataka Planning Authority Rules, 1965, are applicable - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 only to development proposals concerning plots exceeding 20,000 square meters, and not to smaller plots. Importantly, it was also held that if a fee has been previously collected for change of land use or approval of layout plan, no further fee shall be levied for subsequent development plans, in view of the explanatory 'Note' to Table I of Rule 37-A. 5. The Court declared illegal the linkage of such levies to market or guidance value under Section 45-B of the Karnataka Stamp Act, and consequently, quashed all Circulars and demand notices issued to give effect to such unlawful interpretations. Clause 3.8 of the BBMP Building Bye-laws, 2003, imposing 'Ground Rent', was also struck down. 6. In view of these comprehensive declarations and findings, it is submitted that the controversy raised in the present writ petition no longer survives for adjudication independently, as it is squarely covered by the binding - 10 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 judgment of the coordinate bench. In the light of the law laid down in the reported judgment substantially covering the issue, which is raised in the captioned writ petition, the writ petition is liable to be allowed strictly aligning to the operative portion of the said writ petition. 7. In view of the above, this Court proceeds to pass the following; ORDER (i) The writ petition is allowed. (ii) The impugned demand notice dated 20.04.2021 issued by respondent No.3 as per Annexure-A is hereby set-aside. (iii) Respondent- BBMP hereby directed to issue modified sanction plan. (iv) Respondent- BBMP is hereby directed to forthwith process the petitioner's application seeking building license and sanction of the building plan, strictly in accordance with law. - 11 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:21741 WP No. 9341 of 2021 (v) It is made clear that the issuance of the building license and approval plan shall not be withheld merely on the ground that the BBMP is contemplating to file an appeal against the reported judgment. (vi) If the building license and sanction plan are issued, the same shall be subjected to the outcome of any appeal that may be filed by the BBMP against the judgment. Pending applications, if any, are also disposed off. Sd/- (SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM) JUDGE VMB List No.: 2 Sl No.: 35