UDAYAN VASUDEVAN Vs. DISTRICT COLLECTOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is the owner in possession of property having an extent of 26.65 Ares of land comprised in Re.Sy.No.342/12 and 342/3 in Block No.032 of Vembayam Village in Nedumangad Taluk in Thiruvananthapuram District. The grievance of the petitioner is that, even though the said property stood reclaimed before the enactment of the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008 Act (hereinafter referred to as the Paddy Land Act), the same is described as "paddy land" in the revenue records. In such circumstances, the petitioner submitted an application in Form 7, as evidenced by Ext.P3, before the 2nd respondent. As per Ext.P4, the 2nd respondent rejected the said application. Aggrieved the same, the petitioner submitted Ext P5 appeal under Sec.27B of the Kerala Conservation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act, 2008.

(2.) The case of the petitioner is that Ext.P5 appeal is not being considered because, the appeal was filed beyond the period contemplated in Sec.27B. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that, there were valid reasons that prevented the petitioner from invoking the remedy of appeal as contemplated under Sec.27B within the period prescribed. It is also pointed out that, as per statutory provisions, there is no absolute prohibition against entertaining appeals after the period stipulated.

(3.) After hearing Sri.Jomy K. Jose, the learned counsel for the petitioner and Smt Deepa V, the learned Government Pleader, I find merits in the contentions raised by the learned counsel for the petitioner. An appeal is contemplated under Sec. 27B of the Paddy Land Act and sub-sec. (1) of Sec. 27B reads as follows:-