KALLIANIKUTTY AMMA Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This revision is against a conviction under the Madras District Municipalities Act, 1920.

(2.) In January 1951 the petitioner herein, Smt. P. Kallianikutty Amma, obtained sanction from the Kozhikode Municipality to erect a building in her Ayyarkulam paramba in Ward 2 of the said Municipality. The sanction was communicated to her under date 7-1-1951 and it would appear the building was to be completed within a period of 6 months. The usual verification of the building after its construction, however, took place only in September 1955, when it was found that there was an unauthorised construction of a bathroom. There was no provision in the approved plan for any bath-room. The Municipal Commissioner therefore issued a notice to the petitioner under date 25-9-1955 inviting her attention to the unauthorised construction of the bath-room and requesting her to submit plan and remit the necessary licence fees within 7 days of the date of receipt of this order failing which the unauthorised construction will be demolished departmentally at her cost and she will also be liable to be prosecuted without any further notice. The said notice would seem to have reached the petitioner only on 10-11-1955 and on 16-11-1955 she sent a reply thereto stating that the bath-room was in existence some ten years before the new construction was begun, that it formed part of an old building and that the new construction was made in place of the demolished portion of the old building. According to her she was not therefore liable to be proceeded against under the provisions of the District Municipalities Act. The Municipality soon instituted criminal prosecution against the petitioner for non compliance with the request in the notice issued to her on 25-9-1955. The prosecution purported to be under S.338 of the Madras District Municipalities Act.

(3.) The charge sheet laid before the Special First Class Magistrate, Kozhikode on 1-2- 1956 set out the date of offence and nature of offence as follows:-