THIMMARAYASWAMY Vs. GURUMURTHY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is rather a peculiar case in which the appellant Sangha merely claims that in the allotment of a site by the Local Mandal Panchayath in favour of the first respondent, it has violated the norms set out under Section 50 of the Village Panchayath Act. Where therefore no applications are invited and no notice was given to the general public, nor was there any sanction under Section 50 of the Act from the Government to enable the Panchayath to make allotment, it is open to the appellant-rate payer to question the validity of allotment. This was the strong argument put forth by Sri Mohandas N. Hegde. In support of this he has relied on AIR 1949 Bom bay 229, The Municipal Corporation for the City of Bombay and Another - Appellants v Govind Laxman Savant - Respondent, wherein it had been held that a rate payer who is interested in local body, could question if the funds were not utilised in the proper way. Therefore he could maintain the writ petition.

(2.) We have to note in this case that the appellantis not even an individual tax payer, but Yuvaka Rytha Sangha, an association. In our considered view, therefore, the appellant cannot claim to be a rate payer.

(3.) We will assume for a moment that it is a rate payer. Then what is it that will enable him to come by way of writ petition? In AIR 1949 Bombay 229, what was laid down is as follows:-