1996 (2) TMI 550

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..... lotted 10.5 acres of land to the Managing Society, Goswami Ganesh Dutt Sanatan Dharam College, Chandigarh (The Society), respondent in the appeal herein, by the letter dated June 21, 1975. The Estate Officer, Chandigarh Administration, on March 15, 1991, directed the Society to pay a sum of ₹ 1,74,690/-, the difference between the ground rent already paid by the Society and the one which was .....

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..... 0, 1973. Rule 13 of the rules is as under : "13. Rent and Consequences of non- payment. In addition to the premium, whether in respect of site or building, the lessee shall pay rent as under : i) Annual rent shall be 2-1/2% of the premium for the first 33 years which may be enhanced by the Chandigarh Administration to 3-3/4% of the premium for the next 33 years and to 5% of the premium fo .....

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..... nt at the rate of 2-1/2% of the premium for the first 33 years. The fixation of the premium at the rate of ₹ 100/- per acres in the case of the Society was in patent violation of the rules. There is no discretion under the rules with the Chandigarh Administration to fix annual rent at a rate lower than the one provided under the rules. It is stated by the Chandigarh Administration that while .....

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..... d from passing an order prejudicial to the Society specially when the Society has constructed buildings etc. on the allotted land by incurring huge expenditure. The High Court did not go into the question of equitable estopple and allowed the writ petition on the short ground that in the absence of any power of review under the Act and the rules the Chandigarh Administration could not have revised .....

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..... n of the mandatory provisions of law can only be read and enforced in terms of the law and in no other way. The question of equitable estopple does not arise in this case because there can be no estopple against statute. We, therefore, allow the appeal, set aside the impugned judgment of the High Court. The writ petition filed by the Society before the High Court shall stand dismissed. No costs.< .....

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