DELHI CLOTH AND GENERAL MILLS CO. LTD. AND ANR. versus STATE OF RAJASTHAN AND ORS.

Citation: [1996] 1 S.C.R. 518 · Decided: 16-01-1996 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: J.S. VERMA · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed

Cited by 2 judgment(s) · cites 2 · see the full citation network in Lexace

Judgment (excerpt)

A 
DELHI CLOTH AND GENERAL MILLS CO. LTD. AND ANR. 
v. 
STATE OF RAJASTHAN AND ORS. 
JANUARY 16, 1996 
B 
[J.S. VERMA, S.P. BHARUCHA AND K. VENKATASWAMI, JJ.] 
Rajasthan Town Municipalities Act, 1959/Kota Municipal Limits (Contin-
ued Existence) Validating Act, 1975 : 
C 
Sections 4,5,6,713, 6, 7-Kota Town Municipality--Extension of 
limits--lnclusion of villages Raipura and Ummedganj--Preliminary notifica-
tion issued in respect of Raipura-No final notification-Without preliminary 
not~fication, final not~fication issued in respect of Ummedganj--Pending writ 
proceedings before High Court, Government excluded Ummedganjfrom Kota 
D 
Municipal limits-Subsequently Full Bench held it was not validly 
included-Validating Act passed by Government-Challenge thereto upheld by 
Single Judge--But set aside by the Division Bench of the High Court-On 
appeal held legal consequence cannot be deemed nor the events that should 
have preceded it-Facts may be deemed and therefrom the legal consequence 
E 
F 
that.follow-Provisions of ss. 4 to 7 o_f the 1959 Act mandatory-Not.following 
the provisions not cured by the Validating Act-Therefore the Validating Act 
bad in law-Hence struck down. 
The Respondent-State issued a preliminary notification calling for 
objections to the extension of the limits of Kota Municipality by including 
village Raipura. However, this was not followed by a final notification. The 
State Government issued a notification extending the limits of Kota 
Municipality to include village Ummedganj, but it was not preceded by a 
public notification inviting objections thereto. This was challenged in a 
writ petition before the High Court. Pending the decision thereof the State 
G 
Government excluded Village Ummedganj from Kota Municipal limits. 
Subsequently, a Full Bench of the High Court held that Ummedganj was 
not validly included within the limits of Kota Municipality since the 
mandatory provisions in that behalf had not been followed. Therefore, the 
respondent Government passed the Kota Municipal limits (Continued 
H 
Existence) Validating Act, 1975. It was challenged in a writ petition, which 
518 
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• 
DELHI CLOTH & GENL. MILLS LTD. v. STATE 
519 
was allowed by Single Judge. The respondent-State and Kota Municipality 
A 
filed appeals which were allowed by the Division Bench. 
The appellant-Mills established a fertiliser unit in the villages 
Raipura and Ummedganj of district Kota in the year 1969. The villages 
of Raipura and Ummedganj were treated as falling within the municipal 
limits of Kota and Octroi was collected from the appellants. In 1974, 
realising that the levy and realisation of octroi by the Kota Municipality 
was illegal the appellants filed a suit seeking permanent injunction 
restraining the Kota Municipality from levying or collecting octroi from 
the appellants. An injunction was granted, and was upheld in appeal. The 
appellants also filed a suit for refund of the amount of octroi erroneously 
paid by them to the Kota Municipality prior to the filing of the suit. The 
appellant-Mills preferred the present appeal against the judgment of the 
Division Bench of the High Court setting aside the judgment of the Single 
Judge who has upheld the challenge against the validity of the Validating 
B 
c 
~ 
D 
On behalf of the appellants it was contended that the Validating Act 
was bad in law since the defects pointed out by the Full Bench of the High 
Court had not been rectified. 
On behalf of the Kota Municipality it was contended that Section 3 
E 
of the Validating Act required the Court to deem the villages of Raipura 
and Ummedganj always to have been within the Kota Municipal Limits 
and that all corollaries for such assumption have therefore to follow. It was 
also contended that the procedural requirements of Section 4 to 7 of the 
Rajasthan Municipalities Act have been satisfied and that the use of the 
non obstante clause in section 3 of the Validating Act fortified this 
contention. 
Allowing the appeals, this Court 
F 
HELD : 1.1. The Validating Act provides that notwithstanding 
anything contained in Section 4 to 7 of the Rajasthan Town Municipalities 
G 
Act 1959 or in any judgment, decree, order or direction of any Court, the 
villages of Raipura and Ummedganj should be deemed always to have 
continued to exist and they continue to exist within the limits of the Kota 
municipality, to all intents and for all purposes. This provision requires the 
deeming of the legal po

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