P.V. HUSSAIN Vs. COMMISSIONER OF LAND REVENUE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petition P. V. Hussain was or is a partner in an industry--PVS Castings Ltd--that ran up a huge debt of electricity dues. The industry's repeated forays into the judicial arena for redressal bore no fruit. Then, in June 2005, the Board disconnected the power supply. Later, in November 2006, it dismantled the service connection, too. In August 2014 the Board demanded Hussain and others, the partners, to pay over 38 crores; in July 2015, it revised the amount as over 40 crores.

(2.) Unable to realise the dues, the Board invoked the Kerala State Revenue Recovery Act ("RR Act"). Then, the State's revenue machinery swung into action. In March 2017, the revenue authorities issued the Ext.P1 show cause notice to Hussain and other partners. The notice was under Section 65 of the RR Act. In fact, the revenue authorities first proceeded against the partners with assets: the assets were attached, to begin with. But against those partners with no assets, the authorities proceeded for their arrest and detention. Both Hussain and Ashraf, another partner, fall under the latter category.

(3.) In response to the Ext.P1 show cause notice, Hussain submitted his Ext.P2 explanation. Then, the District Collector heard him and Ashraf, in May 2017. Eventually, he passed an order on 1 st February 2018, deciding "to proceed under Section 65 of the KRR Act as the petitioner had failed to prove his case". Later, Ashraf filed a revision before the Land Revenue Commissioner, but could not succeed. The revision was dismissed in May 2018. In Ashraf's revision Hussain was a respondent, but he himself filed no revision against the order, dt.01.02.2018.