CHRIST THE KING CATHEDRAL Vs. JOHN ANCHERIL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) C. A. Nos. 5628/ 2000, 5781/2000, 6375 /2000, 6376/2000, 6378 /2000, 6380 /2000, 6381/2000, 6372 / 2000, 6374 /2000 and C. A. No. 4456 /2001 (arising out of S.L.P. (C) No. 11259 /2000) Leave granted in S.L.P. (C) No. 11259/ 2000.

(2.) Two notifications were issued under Section 25 of the Kerala Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1965 (for short 'the Act') - one S.R.O. No. 435/92 issued on 7-3-92 published in the Kerala Gazette on 7-4-92, which exempted in public interest the buildings of all Churches/ Mosques of all the minority religions from the provisions of Sections 4, 5, 7, 8, 11 and 13 of the Act and another notification S.R.O. No. 769 /96 was published exempting buildings of all Dioceses, Archdioceses, Monasteries, Convents, Wakfs and Madarsas also from the provisions of Sections 4, 5, 7, 8, 11 and 13 of the Act and amended earlier notification. A batch of writ petitions was filed in the High Court challenging the validity of these notifications. The High Court held that there is no application of mind by the Government in issuing the impugned notifications resulting in arbitrary exercise of the discretionary powers conferred upon a statutory authority and there is no material before the Government to exercise such exemption. In reaching this conclusion, the High Court took into consideration that the buildings of Churches or Mosques are commercially used and, therefore, granting of exemption under Section 25 of the Act on the basis of ownership is not right. The High Court also proceeded to consider the scope of secular nature of the Constitution and observed that conferment of power upon the Government to grant such blanket exemptions would defeat the very power conferred on it.

(3.) In the counter affidavit the State supported the exemptions on the basis of the law declared by this Court. This Court in P. J. Irani v. State of Madras, (1962) 2 SCR 169 : (AIR 1961 SC 1781), held that a similar power vested under the Madras Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1949 to exempt any building from the provisions of the Madras Act is not violative of Article 14 of the Constitution by holding that the charitable and religious trusts or endowments fall into a separate class. In S. Kandaswamy Chettiar v. State of Tamil Nadu, (1985) 1 SCC 290 : (AIR 1985 SC 257), this Court upheld grant of total exemption in respect of buildings belonging to public trusts, religious or charitable in nature, on the basis that such trusts constituted a well recognised distinct group inasmuch they not only serve public purpose, but the disbursement of their income is governed by the objects with which they are created.