- (1.) Letters Patent Appeals No. 537, 538 and 574 of 1975 have under clause X of the Letters Patent been filed by the Municipal Committee, Khanna, (hereafter referred to as the appellant) against the judgment of a learned Single Judge of this Court in Civil Writ Petitions No. 2384, 2385 and 2386 of 1972. All the three civil writ petitions having common questions of law and facts were decided by a single Judgment. These three appeals are also being decided by one judgment by us.
(2.) The facts leading to these letters patent appeals in brief are that house-tax was levied in the town of Khanna on 1st of April, 1961. Assessment list was prepared for the assessment year 1961-62 in accordance with the provisions of Chapter V of the Punjab Municipal Act, 1911 (hereinafter referred to as the Act). A fresh assessment list was prepared during the assessment year 1964-65, which remained in force till 31st of March, 1972. The appellant vide resolutions dated 12th of July, 1970 and 23rd of December, 1970 adopted the list for years 1970-71 and 1971-72, as it stood in the assessment year 1969-70. Some persons including a few of the respondents, residents of Khanna, took appeals against these resolutions before the Sub Divisional Officer (Civil), Samrala, under section 84 of the Act, challenging the assessment of house tax on the houses and buildings. Vide orders dated 27th of January, 1972, the Sub-Divisional Officer (Civil) Samrala, set aside the aforesaid resolutions. The appellants filed the civil writ petitions giving rise to these letters patent appeals, challenging the orders of the Sub-Divisional Officer (Civil), Samrala, and delending the validity of the resolutions. The learned Single Judge held that the list mentioned in section 68 of the Act has to be prepared in advocate before the commencement of the following year and upheld the order of the Sub-Divisional Officer (Civil) regarding the resolution dated 12th of July, 1972 adopting the assessment list for 1969-70 for assessment year 1970-71. The other resolution dated 23rd of December, 1970 was upheld and the order of the Sub-Divisional Officer, (Civil) to the extent was set aside.
(3.) In these appeals the only argument raised by Shri T.S. Doabia, learned counsel for the appellant, is that the Municipal Committee has power under section 68 of the Act to draw a new assessment list or to adopt the list of any previous year without any modification or adopt the list of any previous year after making modifications in the valuation and assessment at any time in the assessment year. Even if, according to him, this assessment list is made effective during the currency of the assessment year, it shall be operative from the beginning of that assessment year. He has urged that only the initial levy of the house tax has to be made before the commencement of the assessment year and not the subsequent lists. He has reclined for support against the judgment reported in New Delhi Municipal Committee v. Life Insurance Corporation of India, 1977 AIR(SC) 2134.;