JUDGMENT

N.P. SINGH, J.- Two appeals, one on behalf of the State of West Bengal and the other on behalf of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation, have been filed against the same judgment of the Calcutta High Court.

2. By the impugned judgment, the High Court has held that Calcutta Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Act, 1990 (hereinafter referred to as the Amending Act) was unconstitutional and a direction has been given to Calcutta Municipal Corporation to proceed to sanction the applications for proposed construction of buildings rising above 13.5 metres in height which were pending on 18-12-1989, in accordance with the building rules which were applicable on that date.

3. The Calcutta Municipal Corporation Act, 1980 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) came into force on 4-1-1984 by which the earlier Calcutta Municipal Act, 1951 was repealed. Under the Act, power has been conferred on the State Government to make rules for all or any of the matters connected with the Act, but till December 1990, no building rule under the Act could be made. By virtue of Section 635(2)(f) of the Act, Schedule XVI of the earlier Act which contained the Building Rules continued to remain in force under the Act.

4. It is the case of the appellants that Government of West Bengal felt the necessity of framing new Building Rules under the Act to cope with the present-day problems of the Calcuttas urban growth and civic existence keeping in view the accentuating traffic congestion, dearth of open space, lack of suitable facility for sewerage and sanitation and other amenities. The old Building Rules were found to be not suitable and appropriate for the construction of buildings, particularly, high-rise ones. So a decision was taken to frame new Building Rules to regulate indiscriminate growth of constructions of buildings in Calcutta. With that object, the State Government formed an Expert Committee, consisting of Secretaries of different Departments concerned, as well as the Chief Government Architect, Public Works Department, and the Municipal Commissioner of Calcutta for framing the new Building Rules. It is said that after thorough and exhaustive consideration by the Expert Committee, the Draft Building Rules were finalised, which were modified in the light of representations, suggestions and objections received from various official and non-official quarters by the State Government. Before such rules could be brought in force, different proceedings were initiated in the High Court of Calcutta in which ex parte orders of injunction were granted restraining the State Government from publishing the rules in question. In the meantime, more and more applications continued to be submitted to the Calcutta Municipal Corporation for sanction of high-rise buildings under the old Building Rules. As there was no chance of proceedings pending before the High Court being disposed of, a decision was taken by the State Government to impose a ban on the submission of building plans for high-rise construction for a period of one year within which period it was expected that the new rules shall come in force. As the legislature was not in session, Calcutta Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Ordinance, 1989 was promulgated with effect from 18-12-1989 by which a new section i.e. Section 398-A was introduced into the Act, which is as follows:

"398-A. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or in any other law for the time being in force, with effect from the date of coming into force of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Ordinance, 1989 (hereinafter referred to in this section as the said Ordinance) and for a period of one year from such date (hereinafter referred to in this section as the said period), no person shall apply for sanction of any plan to erect a building exceeding thirteen and a half metres in height.

(2) Any application for sanction of any plan to erect a building exceeding thirteen and a half metres in height, submitted by any person