Section 2(44) of the Act of 1949 defines "official year" thus : "2(44) "official year or year" means the year commencing on the first day of April."
{Para 7}
8. The law laid down by the Full Bench of this Court in Solapur Municipal Corporation and approved by the Apex Court in Municipal Corporation of City of Hubli and further re-iterated in Kalyan Municipal Council is applicable on all fours in the light of the statutory provision contained in Rule 20(1)(e) and definition of the expression "official year" occurring in Section 2(44). Any amendment in the assessment book by inserting or altering an entry in respect of any building erected, re-erected, altered, added to or reconstructed in whole or in part of the assessment book shall be and can only be effective during the currency of official year. The expression "official year" defined under Section 2(44) of the Act of 1949 read with Rule 20(1)(e) indicates without doubt the legal position that the property tax being tax for the official year must be levied only during the official year. In view thereof, it was not open for the Commissioner to amend or alter assessment entry of petitioner's property with retrospective effect. In other words, the demand of property tax raised for the period from 1-4-1985 to 31-3-1990 vide demand notices dated 8-1-1991 cannot be justified and to that extent the notices as well as the demand bills have to be modified.
9. We, accordingly, partly allow the writ petition and partially quash the special notices dated 8-1-1991 (Annexures "D" and "E") and bills dated 12-12-1991 (Annexures "G" and "H") to the extent demand of property tax has been raised with retrospective effect for the period from 20-5-1985 till 31-3-1990. The respondents may, accordingly, issue fresh demand of property taxes as per the aforesaid observations.
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