IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P.R.RAMAN & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P.S.GOPINATHAN TUESDAY, THE 17TH FEBRUARY 2009 / 28TH MAGHA 1930 WP(C).No. 3823 of 2009(E) ------------------------- PETITIONER(S): --------------- TRAVANCORE DEVASWOM BOARD REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY NANTHANCODE, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM-3. BY ADV. SRI.E.K.MADHAVAN SRI.V.KRISHNA MENON RESPONDENT(S): --------------- THE STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY REVENUE DEPARTMENT, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM. GOVT. PLEADER SRI. R. LAKSHMINARAYANAN. THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 17/02/2009, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: P.R. RAMAN & P.S. GOPINATHAN, JJ. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = W.P.(C) NO. 3823 OF 2009 = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = DATED THIS, THE 17TH DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2009. J U D G M E N T Raman, J. The prayer made in this writ petition is to quash Ext.P4 and to declare that the buildings belonging to the Travancore Devaswom Board are liable to be exempted from the provisions of the Kerala Building Tax Act, 1975. 2. Ext.P4 is a communication from the Principal Secretary to Government, to the Secretary, Trvancore Devaswom Board. It is stated in Ext.P4 that the Board has not produced any evidence to show that shopping complexes and Kalyanamandapam constructed by the Travancore Devaswom Board involve 25% of Government Funds and so it is not possible to exempt those constructions from building tax under Section 3(A) of the Kerala Building Tax Act. 3. The claim for exemption was made on the presumption that the building owned and possessed by a public authority like the Travancore Devaswom Board will come under the purview of Section 3(A) of the WP(C) 3823/2009 :2: Kerala Building Tax Act. This Court, in a reported decision in Medical Trust Hospital v. State of Kerala (2004(2) ILR 408) has held that it is the user of the building that will determine the question as to whether it is exempted from payment of Building Tax or not. If it is for the purpose mentioned in Section 3(1)(b) of the Act that the building is put to use, necessarily the building has to be exempted. Therefore merely because a building is owned by the Travancore Devaswom Board, that itself may not entitle them to claim exemption under Section 3(A) of the Act. As we have already stated, it is the user of the building that has to be looked into as and when any particular building is sought to be taxed. Having due regard to the purpose for which it is put, it is open to the Travancore Devaswom Board to claim exemption and if prima facie the assessing officer is satisfied, necessarily he will forward the matter to the Government to consider whether the particular building is to be exempted from tax. Clarifying the position as above, the writ petition is disposed of. P.R. RAMAN, JUDGE. P.S. GOPINATHAN, JUDGE. KNC/-