G NARAYAN MURTY Vs. BERHAMPUR MUNICIPALITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Both the revision applications have been referred to the larger Bench by a learned Judge of this Court who entertained some doubts in the correctness of the decision inter -parties reported in AIR 1981 Orissa 29.

(2.) THE applications are by the defendant The Berhampur Municipality through its Executive Officer brought an action against the petitioner in the Court of the Munsif, Berhampur, for recovery of a sum of Rs. 1905.36 as arrears of house tax, etc., for three years, namely, 1974 -75, 1975 -76 and 1976 -77, at the rate of Rs. 158.78 per quarter. The petitioner contested the claim on various grounds including the right of the plaintiff to get a decree on the basis of the new rates of assessment on the ground that it was unenforceable in law for non - compliance of the mandatory provision of Section 147(2) of the Orissa Municipal Act, 1950 (shortly stated as 'the Act).

(3.) OBVIOUSLY , if the petitioner succeeds in his main application (C. R. No. 666/81), then the other application (C. R. No. 665/81) would automatically become infructuous. Otherwise also, it was rightly conceded that if the petitioner fails in his main application, then this application would also fail. Therefore, I am not adverting to any further details of that application.