- (1.) The petitioners have challenged the demand made by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation by its letter dated 21st January, 2013 requesting the writ petitioner no.1 to arrange to deposit a sum of Rs.40,47,630/- for construction of box drain including supervision charges in place of the surface drain running in front of the premises of the said petitioner.
(2.) Mr. Mitra, learned Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of the petitioners relied upon an unreported judgment dated 16th April, 2010 (Bodhi Art Limited & Anr. Vs. Kolkata Municipal Corporation and Ors.) made by a Division Bench of this Hon'ble Court by which on the basis of information given on behalf of the Corporation that till date no regulation in term of Section 289 of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation Act, 1980 had been made authorizing it to recover expenses made by it for having a private house-drain made to communicate with municipal drain as is in or under a public street, held the Corporation had acted without jurisdiction in making the demand impugned therein. He further submitted the Corporation in its affidavit-in-opposition relied only on an amendment having been made to Section 393 of the said Act regarding imposition of drainage development fees. He submitted the Corporation having already had demanded and collected drainage development fees from the petitioners, the question for adjudication was whether the Corporation had the power to realize the costs of constructing a drain outside the premises of the petitioners as empowered by any regulation made under Section 289 of the said Act.
(3.) Mr. Mukherjee, learned Advocate appeared on behalf of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and submitted the impugned request was issued in exercise of power under Section 307 read with Section 131 of the said Act. He submitted the impugned request was levy of a fee in respect of drainage as fixed in the budget estimate referred to in Section 131(3) of the said Act being the budget estimate for the year 2013-14. He pointed out the Chief Engineer's Department had given an estimate for house drainage connection fees for, inter alia, supply and laying of SW pipes on concrete bed from termination point of work done by the owner or occupier to the point of connection including the costs of temporary restoration of road surface.;