RLDA Not a Juristic Entity, Madras HC sets aside Property Tax by Municipality on Railway Land Being...

The Madras High Court has set aside a property tax demand raised by a municipality on land owned by the Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA), ruling it to be unconstitutional. The court held that the RLDA, being a statutory authority constituted under the Railways Act, is an extended arm of the Indian Railways and, therefore, its property is the "property of the Union." The court observed that Article 285 of the Constitution of India exempts the property of the Union from all taxes imposed by a state or any authority within a state. The High Court also noted that the RLDA is not a separate "juristic entity" in the way a company is, further strengthening the argument that its land is railway property. By quashing the tax demand, the court has upheld this constitutional protection for railway properties.