JUDGMENT :

(A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar, J.)

1. The appellant, M/s. Lisie Medical Institutions is a trust formed under a Trust Deed dated 03.04.1990 to take over the management of Lisie Hospital, Ernakulam. The present appeal comes before us pursuant to a remand by the Supreme Court through its judgment dated 09.02.2023 in Civil Appeal No.6799 of 2017. The said judgment was rendered by a three Judge Bench to which the judgment of a two Judge bench in Lisie Medical Institutions v. State of Kerala, (2017) 14 SCC 533, was referred after doubting the correctness of an earlier two Judge bench decision of the Supreme Court in SH Medical Centre Hospital v. State of Kerala, (2014) 11 SCC 381. The brief facts necessary for a disposal of this appeal are as follows:

2. The appellant trust runs a hospital by the name of Lisie Hospital at Ernakulam. In respect of a building that was constructed by it in 2013, wherein it was providing medical treatment at concessional rates, it was served with a notice demanding building tax under the Kerala Building Tax Act (hereinafter referred to as “the Act” for brevity). As per Section 3(2) of the Act, whenever any question arises as to whether a building qual