W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 1 2025:KER:28329 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE VIJU ABRAHAM WEDNESDAY, THE 2ND DAY OF APRIL 2025 / 12TH CHAITHRA, 1947 WP(C) NO. 6861 OF 2022 PETITIONERS: 1 ANISH GANGADHARAN AGED 38 YEARS RESIDING AT THUMBAYIL VEETTIL, MOOVATTUPUZHA TALUK, ENANNALLUR VILLAGE, AYYAVANA P.O, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 686667 2 SREEJA RAJ .T AGED 36 YEARS WIFE OF ANISH GANGADHARAN, RESIDING AT THUMBAYIL VEETTIL, MOOVATTUPUZHA TALUK, ENANNALLUR VILLAGE, AYYAVANA P.O, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 686667 BY ADVS. K.B.GANGESH SMITHA CHATHANARAMBATH ATHIRA A.MENON RESPONDENTS: 1 ALUVA MUNICIPALITY REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY, MUNCIPAL OFFICE, ALUVA,ERNAKULAM, PIN - 683101 2 THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER OFFICE OF THE REVENUE DIVISIONAL OFFICER, FORT KOCHI, ERNAKULAM,, PIN - 682001 3 THE VILLAGE OFFICER VILLAGE OFFICE ,ALUVA WEST ERNAKULAM, PIN - 683101 W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 2 2025:KER:28329 BY ADV K.T.THOMAS OTHER PRESENT: GP- NIMA JACOB THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 02.04.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 1 2025:KER:28329 VIJU ABRAHAM, J. -------------------- W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 -------------------------------- Dated this the 2nd day of April, 2025 JUDGMENT The petitioners have approached this Court challenging Ext P5 order and for other consequential reliefs. 2. Petitioners purchased a certain extent of land as per Ext.P1 sale deed. In Ext.P2 tax receipt, Ext.P3 possession certificate and Ext.P4 thandaper account, the property has been described as garden land (purayidom). When the petitioners applied for a building permit, the same was rejected as per Ext.P5 on the ground that the petitioners have to update BTR extract with the new survey number (13/16-2). It is submitted that the petitioners' properties are all surrounded by buildings and on the southern side, the Aluva Municipal Road is situated and all these properties are shown as garden land in the village records. W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 2 2025:KER:28329 The petitioners' property is also not included in Ext.P7 data bank. Though the property is shown as garden land in all village records, in the BTR with corresponding old survey number, the property is described as 'nilam.' When the petitioners approached the third respondent for updating the BTR with re-survey number it was declined and the petitioners were advised to submit a Form 6 application. The said application submitted has been rejected by the system itself as per Ext.P9 showing an error that there is no corresponding land available in the database in the above-said survey number as “nilam”. Petitioners submit that after the re-survey, the petitioners' property has been classified as garden land as evidenced from Exts. P1 to P4. 3. Based on the statement filed by the 1st respondent. It is submitted that though the property is shown as garden land in the other records, the same is not updated in the BTR and W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 3 2025:KER:28329 therefore the application submitted by the petitioners was rejected with a direction to update BTR extract with the new survey number. 4. Learned Government pleader upon instructions submitted that the property comprised in survey Nos. 513/5B, 513/5B2, 513/5C was mentioned as purayidom and survey No. 518/6B is mentioned as “nilam” in the BTR. During the re- survey, the first set of old survey numbers was included in one resurvey number as puriyadom and second one i.e. 518/6B is included in another resurvey as 'nilam'. However, at that time, by mistake, these were together included in one single Resurvey number, ie., Resurvey 13 of Town block 61 in two different classifications. Before the computerisation of land records, that was not an issue as both classes could be handled separately, but after computerisation of the land records, in the ReLis software, in which Revenue department has land data, the resurvey number is unique. W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 4 2025:KER:28329 Hence part of one resurvey number cannot be added as 'Nilam' and other as 'Purayidom'. At present, the ReLis software include 49.63 Ares of land in Resurvey 13 of Town block 61 in Aluva West Village as Purayidom. 5. I have considered the rival contentions of both sides. 6. Admittedly when the petitioners purchased the property, in all the revenue records, the property has been shown as 'purayidom' as evidenced from Exts.P1 to P4. The property has not been included in the data bank which proves that the property was not a paddy land as on 2008, the date on which the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008, came into force. When the Municipality rejected the request of the petitioners for issuance of a building permit as the property was shown as 'nilam' in the BTR and an application in Form-6 was submitted, the authorities have rejected the same stating that no W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 5 2025:KER:28329 land is available with “nilam/nanja”. Taking into consideration the above said circumstance, this Court as per order dated 05.04.2022, issued the following order. “Admit. Learned Government Pleader takes notice for respondents 2 and 3. Learned Standing Counsel takes notice for the 1st respondent. There will be an interim direction to the 1st respondent to consider the application submitted by the petitioners for building permit and to provisionally issue the building permit, in view of the fact that the property is recorded as 'purayidom' in all the records except the BTR. The 2nd respondent shall also take appropriate steps to see that the notings in the revenue records are duly verified and appropriate steps are taken to rectify the same in accordance with law.” Petitioners submit that based on the interim order granted by this Court, building permit was provisionally issued and based on the same, the construction of the building is now over. Though this Court as per the said order directed the 2nd respondent to take steps to rectify the entries in W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 6 2025:KER:28329 the Revenue Records, no action has been taken. Though the petitioners submitted necessary application under Form-6 to change the nature of land, the same was rejected stating that there was no land classified as nilam/nanja. 7. Learned Government Pleader submits that this happened due to a mistake in the entry made in the revenue records. I am of the view that since the petitioner has purchased the property as per Ext.P1 after verifying revenue records, which showed that the property is a 'purayidom', any mistake in the entry made in the revenue records cannot be a reason for rejecting the application for issuance of a building permit. Though, an application under Form-6 was filed, the 2nd respondent has rejected the same stating that there is no land classified as nilam/nanja. It is pertinent to note that the property has not been included in the data bank as evident from Ext.P7. Petitioners have completed the construction of a W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 7 2025:KER:28329 residential building on the strength of the permit granted by the local authority. In view of the above, I am of the opinion that petitioners are entitled for the relief sought for and the writ petition is allowed as follows. (i) Ext.P5 is set aside. There will be a direction to the 1st respondent to issue occupancy certificate to the petitioners if the construction of the building is in accordance with the building permit granted by the 1st respondent. (ii) If there is any entry in the BTR showing the property comprised in Survey No. 518/6B (13/16-2) as “nilam”, the 2nd respondent shall accept the application in Form-6 and if the same could not be accepted online a physical copy submitted by the petitioner in this regard within a period of 2 weeks from the date of receipt of copy of the judgment shall be accepted and orders shall be passed changing the nature of the land. The same shall be done within a period of one month thereafter. sd/- VIJU ABRAHAM,JUDGE pm W.P.(C).No.6861 of 2022 8 2025:KER:28329 APPENDIX OF WP(C) 6861/2022 PETITIONERS' EXHIBITS Exhibit P1 TRUE COPY OF DOCUMENT NO.407/2016 OF SUB REGISTRAR OFFICE,ALUVA,DATED 04.02.2016 Exhibit P2 TRUE COPY OF THE PROPERTY TAX RECEIPT NO.KL 07041509989/2021DATED 20/12/2021 ISSUED TO THE PETITIONERS Exhibit P3 TRUE COPY OF THE POSSESSION CERTIFICATE NO. 62516302 ISSUED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT DATED 30/12/2021 Exhibit P4 TRUE COPY OF THE THANDAPPER ACCOUNT NO.14645 DATED 07.02.2022 ISSUED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT Exhibit P5 TRUE COPY OF OBJECTION LETTER BA/1064/0004/2022 DATED NIL ISSUED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT Exhibit P6 TRUE COPY OF THE LOCATION SKETCH NO 1438/2021 DATED 30/12/2021 OF THE PETITIONERS PROPERTY ISSUED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT Exhibi P7 TRUE COPY OF THE RELEVANT POTION OF THE DATA BANK OF ALUVA WEST VILLAGE AS CERTIFIED BY THE AGRICULTURAL OFFICER, ALUVA Exhibit P8 TRUE COPY OF THE BTR EXTRACT OF THE PETITIONERS PROPERTY MAINTAINED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT Exhibit P9 TRUE COPY OF THE ONLINE STATUS FROM THE WEBSITE OF REVENUE E-SERVICE DATED NIL