Page 93 - GSTL_23rd April 2020_Vol 35_Part 4

2020 ] IN RE : NEWTOWN KOLKATA DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY 419
trusted to a Municipality under Art. 243W of the Constitution. This apart, the
State Government may transfer to NKDA in terms of Section 17 of the NKDA Act
such functions and duties relating to Government under any law which the State
Legislature is competent to enact or which are otherwise within the executive
power of the State. Section 35 of the NKDA Act allows the Applicant to levy a
development charge on the owners or the occupiers of any land within its territo-
rial jurisdiction for carrying out the activities referred to above.
4.5 NKDA is, therefore, a statutory authority established to carry out
the functions entrusted to a Municipality under Art. 243W of the Constitution. It
is a body discharging municipal functions, although not a municipality as re-
quired to be constituted under Art. 243Q of the Constitution and is fit to be in-
cluded as ‘other authority’ under Section 2(69)(c) of the GST Act. It will also be a
local authority within the meaning of the above section of the GST Act if the Ap-
plicant is legally entitled to or entrusted by the State Government with the con-
trol or management of a municipal or local fund.
4.6 NKDA is not a Municipality. It cannot, therefore, be entrusted with
the control or management of a municipal fund, as described under Section 67 of
Chapter VII of Part III of the West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993.
4.7 The GST Act does not define a local fund. Section 2 of the Local Au-
thorities Loans Act, 1914, defines a local authority as a person legally entitled to
the control or management of any local or municipal fund, or legally entitled to
impose any cess, rate, duty or tax within any local area, and ‘funds’ used with
reference to such a local authority includes any local or municipal funds. Local
fund is defined in T.R. 6.29 of Section VII of WBTR as (a) revenues administered
by bodies which by law or rule having the force of law come under the control of
the Government whether in regard to the proceedings generally, or to specific
matters such as approving their budgets, sanction to the creation or filling up of
posts, making leave, pension or similar rules, (b) the revenue of any body which
may be specially notified by the Government as such.
4.8 Section 3 of the NKDA Act provides that the members of NKDA,
including the Chairman, shall be appointed by the State Government. It sanc-
tions and creates or reduces posts of officers under NKDA and, if it thinks neces-
sary, may appoint its officers on deputation to NKDA on such terms and condi-
tions as it may determine (Sections 10 and 11 of the NKDA Act). The State Gov-
ernment may decide the pay and allowances of the officers and other employees
of NKDA and may provide grant towards payment of such salary (Section 12 of
the NKDA Act). It shall prescribe the manner in which the accounts of NKDA are
to be kept and audit such accounts on regular basis (Sections 24 and 25 of the
NKDA Act). The State Government may annul any proceedings or resolutions of
NKDA or remove any member of NKDA and the latter shall be guided by such
directions as the State Government may provide in conformity with the provi-
sions of the NKDA Act (Sections 169 and 170 of the NKDA Act). In short, NKDA
is a body which by law comes under the control of the State Government, as en-
visaged in TR 6.29(a) of WBTR.
4.9 Section 19 of the NKDA Act provides for constitution of a Devel-
opment Fund for the purpose of the Act and all amounts received by NKDA,
including the charges levied under Section 35, grants received from the State
Government, shall be credited to the said fund. Correspondence mentioned in
para 2.2 above also establishes that NKDA has come under the control of the
GST LAW TIMES  23rd April 2020  213