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DIPANKAR DATTA, K. V. VISWANATHAN
P. Radhakrishnan – Appellant
Versus
Cochin Devaswom Board – Respondent
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. leave was granted to appeal the high court's judgment. (Para 1 , 2) |
| 2. appellants challenge high court's unexpected directives. (Para 3 , 4 , 12 , 18) |
| 3. historical context and facts underpinning fee adjustments. (Para 5 , 8 , 10) |
| 4. high court upheld license fee increase based on appraisal. (Para 15 , 21) |
| 5. court expunges unjust high court directions. (Para 30 , 32) |
JUDGMENT :
K.V. Viswanathan, J.
1. Leave was granted in this matter on 09.09.2025.
2. The present appeal calls in question the judgment and order dated 09.08.2023 passed by the High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam in Writ Petition (C) No. 29089/2020. At the commencement of the hearing, Mr. Gaurav Agrawal, learned Senior Counsel, submitted that the appellants in terms of the Ext.P3-Proceedings dated 16.09.2014 and Ext.P9-Notice dated 27.11.2020, shall pay the licence fee, at the rate of Rs.1,50,000/- per annum along with arrears to the first respondent-Cochin Devaswom Board (hereinafter referred to as the “Board”).
3. However, the grievance of the appellants is that the further directions of the High Court have rendered them worse off in their own writ petition. The further directions in Para 53 of the judgment,
The main legal point established in the judgment is that unless an order passed by a lower court is challenged and quashed, there is no basis for seeking a command to restrain a particular action.
Demand for license fee before business commencement violates natural justice principles and must be based on factual correctness.
The prescribed fee payable under Sec.27A(1) is the notified fair value of the subject property covered by the application, and it should be strictly based on the fair value as on the date of submissi....
The main legal point established is that the disputed factual questions should be adjudicated by the competent authority, and the grant of license in excise matter is not a fundamental right.
The right to appeal is substantive and determined by the law in effect at the original proceeding's initiation, not subject to retrospective fee increases.
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