Building tax assessment finality limits writ relief where statutory appeal and revision were not pursued

Under the Kerala Building Tax Act, 1975, once a building tax assessment is completed, the assessing authority has no further jurisdiction to reopen or reconsider it; an aggrieved taxpayer must use the statutory remedies of appeal and revision. Where those remedies are not invoked, the assessment attains finality, and a writ petition challenging the assessment and consequential revenue recovery is not maintainable. The text also notes that part payment made against the assessment and a later request to accept only a portion of the tax in full satisfaction do not, on these facts, provide a legal basis to disturb the completed assessment.

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Issues: Whether the writ petition challenging the building tax assessment and consequential revenue recovery proceedings was maintainable when no statutory appeal or revision had been invoked, and whether the assessing authority could be asked to reconsider the completed assessment.

Analysis: The assessment under the Kerala Building Tax Act, 1975 had already been completed. After passing the assessment order, the assessing authority had no further jurisdiction over the matter for purposes of building tax, and the proper course for an aggrieved person was to pursue the remedies of appeal and revision provided under the Act. In the absence of resort to those statutory remedies, the assessment had attained finality. The petitioner had also acted upon the assessment by making part payment, and a later request to accept only a portion of the assessed amount in full satisfaction of the tax was not legally sustainable. On these facts, invocation of writ jurisdiction was not justified.

Conclusion: The writ petition was not maintainable on merits and was dismissed.

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