The central legal point established in the judgment is the application of G.O.(Ms).No.92, Municipality Administration and Water Supply Department dated 03.07.2007, which mandated a 15% increase in rent at the end of three years, influencing the court's decision on rent fixation.

JUDGMENT

(Prayer: Writ Petition filed under Article 226 of Constitution of India, for issuance of a Writ of Certiorarified Mandamus, calling for the records of the second respondent Committee order fixing the lease value as Rs.40/- per sq.ft of the Petitioner-s Plot in his proceedings in Na.Ka.No.3622/2017/A2 dated 28.10.2021 and the consequential demand order of the third respondent fixing the lease value of Rs.40/- per sq.ft vide his proceedings in Na.Ka.No.4662/2016/A1 dated 29.11.2021 and demand notice Na.Ka.No.4662/2016/A1 dated and demand notice Na.Ka.No.4662/2016/A1 dated 18.04.2022 and to quash the same and further direct the Respondents to consider the Petitioner-s case both sympathetically and legally and fix the fair lease amount for the vacant land occupied by the Petitioner in Big Plot No.4-B measuring 384 sq.ft. in Duraiswami Reddiyar Market, Tambaram, Chennai – 600 045.)

By this common order all these writ petitions are being disposed of.

2. The dispute pertains to Duraiswami Reddiyar Market in Tambaram Corporation earlier Tambaram Municipality. The respective petitioners are holding lands under their control and have put up shops in Duraiswami Reddiyar Market in different sq.ft. Each of these petitioners have been paying very low rent to the respondent Tambaram Municipality and there was no revision of rent for about seven decades.

3. It appears that many of the petitioners were not the original lessees of the respondent municipality. In 2017, the rent payable by the petitioners was re-fixed in terms of a Committee Report dated 06.11.2017 bearing reference Na.Ka.No.3622/2017/A2. The rent that was fixed by the Committee was at Rs.20 per Sq.ft.

4. Aggrieved by the same, the petitioners filed a batch of writ petitions before this Court in W.P.Nos.21305, 21306, 21307, 21308, 21309, 21310, 21376, 21377, 21378, 21379, 21380, 21381, 21525, 28259 of 2018 and 7521, 7528 and 7604 of 2019 which came to be disposed by a common order dated 22.04.2019 with the following observations:

7. With the consent of the learned counsel appearing for both side, this Court is inclined to pass the following order:

(i) The impugned demand notice in Na.Ka.No.4662/2016/A1 dated 10.11.2017 and 27.4.2018 and the final demand notice, dated 18.5.2018 issued by the respondent Municipality are quashed.

(ii) The Regional Director is directed to constitute a Committee headed by the Regional Director and the other members, namely Regional Executive Engineer, Municipal Administration, the Commissioner, Tambaram Municipality, Executive Engineer, Public Works Department, to assess the report submitted by the Committee and the relevant materials for fixing the rental value for the petitioners- shop with effect from 1.4.2017.

(iii) The petitioner has agreed to pay the difference of revised lease amount at the rate of Rs.10/- per sq.ft. from 1.4.2017 till the final order passed by the respondent Corporation.

(iv) The writ petitioners shall pay arrears of the difference of revised lease amount as stated supra, in two instalments, namely, 50% of the difference of the revised lease amount for the aforesaid period shall be paid within a period of six weeks from the date of receipt of copy of this order and the remaining 50% shall be paid by the petitioners within a period of six weeks thereafter.

(v) In default, it is open to the respondent Municipality to proceed in accordance with law.

(vi) The Commissioner, Tambaram Municipality shall submit a report along with the guideline value of the registration department and any other materials, before the Committee, within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of copy of the order.

(vii) On receipt of such report, the Committee shall consider the same and fix the revised lease amount for the petitioners- land within a period of 12 weeks from the date of receipt of the report.

(viii) Thereafter, the Com