- (1.) This application under Article 227 of the Constitution of India is at the instance of Kolkata Municipal Corporation and is directed against order dated 15th December, 2003 passed by the Municipal Assessment Tribunal, Kolkata in M.A.A No. 2793 of 2001 thereby disposing of an application filed by the opposite party No. 1 for condonation of delay in preferring the aforesaid appeal by holding that there was no delay in presentation of the same.
(2.) The following facts are not in dispute: The opposite party No. 1 purchased the land in question from the previous recorded owner on 9th December, 1985 and thereafter on 21st April, 1988 filed an application for mutation. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation Authority mutated the name of the opposite party No. 1 in place of the erstwhile owner on 10th December, 1988. Subsequently, on 17th December, 1988, i.e. within seven days from the date of mutation, the Municipal Authority enhanced the valuation of the disputed property with effect from fourth quarter of 1985-86 to Rs. 41,760/- from the earlier valuation of Rs. 4364/-. Such enhancement was not the outcome of a regular reassessment but of an intermediate assessment under section 180(2)(i) of Kolkata Municipal Corporation Act, as it then stood. Subsequently, there have been two regular reassessments at the interval of six years and against those reassessments, the Opposite Party No. 1 had preferred two different appeals being M.A.A. No. 2111 of 1988 and 2112 of 1998 which are pending.
(3.) During the pendency of the aforesaid two appeals, the opposite party No. 1 preferred M.A.A. No. 2799 of 2001 alleging that during the pendency of the aforesaid two appeals, it came to know by the first time that the aforesaid intermediate revaluation order dated 17th December, 1988 was passed. The memorandum of such appeal was accompanied by an application under section 5 of the Limitation Act for condonation of delay in preferring the appeal.;