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2. The material facts for the disposal of the appeal are as follows:

The writ petitioner is the owner in possession of 5.66 Ares of property comprised in re-Survey No. 306/4, Block No.4 of Cheranalloor Village in Kanayannur Taluk, Ernakulam District, which is an undisputed fact. The said property was included in the data bank prepared by the Local Level Monitoring Committee of the Cheranalloor Grama Panchayat under the provisions of the Act, 2008 as converted before 5 years. The writ petitioner submitted an application for building permit before the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat, the second appellant herein, for the construction of the residential house in the property, against which Ext.P3 permit was granted for the construction of 240.77 square meters of residential building in two floors. Admittedly, over and above the plinth area permitted to be constructed as per the permit, the writ petitioner carried out additional constructions and it was completed on 28.12.2017. Thereafter, in accordance with Rules, 2011, the writ petitioner has submitted a completion plan, and an application seeking occupancy certificate before the Secretary on 30.01.2018. Since the application was not considered, the writ petitioner approached this Court by filing W.P.(C) No. 31405 of 2018 seeking appropriate directions for consideration of the application. The said writ petition was disposed of directing the writ petitioner to file an application for regularisation in the prescribed format and thereupon, directed the respondents therein to consider and dispose of the application within three months. It was thereafter that Ext.P6 impugned notice was issued by the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat dated 15.12.2018 stating that since the land owned by the writ petitioner is classified as 'nilam' in the revenue records, permission should be obtained from the Revenue Divisional Officer as per Section 27A of the Act, 2008, with a further direction that a proper application should be submitted for regularisation of additional portion of building constructed deviating from the approved plan. The case of the writ petitioner is that since the writ petitioner was abroad, the application for regularisation of the additional construction could be furnished only on 29.02.2020, produced as Ext.P7 along with the writ petition and the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat has issued Ext.P8 receipt for the same.
(4) The owner of a building may if he intends to occupy the building before its completion, apply to the Secretary for that purpose and the Secretary shall, on being satisfied that such occupancy will not in any way endanger life, issue occupancy certificate in respect of the completed part."

15. Said so, the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat is vested with ample powers for regularisation of un-permitted constructions and deviations as per Rule 134 of the Rules, 2011, which stipulates that the Secretary shall have the power to regularise construction or reconstruction, addition or alteration of any building or digging of any well or telecommunication tower or any structure or land development or any work, for which permission of the Secretary is necessary under the Rule commenced, being carried on completed without obtaining approved plan or in deviation of the approved plan, provided that such construction or reconstruction or addition or alteration of any building or digging of any well or telecommunication tower or any structure or land development or any such work shall not be in violation of any of the provisions of the Act or the Rules.

18. It is clear from Rules, 2018 that the application is to be submitted to the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat in Form I - A of Rules, 2018. Going by the Rules, 2018 the power is vested with the Government to consider the application ultimately and to take appropriate decisions. Therefore, the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat did not have any power under Rules, 2018 to take any decision rather than forwarding the application received along with the statutory requirements to the State Government, if the application was in order. Under rule 2(k) of Rules 2018 unauthorised construction means any construction, addition or reconstruction as explained under section 235AB of the Act, which was carried out or completed on or before the 31st day of July, 2017 and which the Secretary has no power to regularise under section 235W of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act 1994 and Chapter XXII of the Building Rules, 2011 dealing with regularisation of unpermitted constructions and deviations discussed above. That said proviso to section 235W(1) of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act 1994 enables the Secretary on realisation of a compounding fee as may be fixed by the Government, regularise any construction, reconstruction, or alteration of the building, commenced, carried on or completed without getting a plan approved by the Secretary or in deviation of the plan approved by him, if such construction or alteration of the building does not contravene any of the criteria or specifications mentioned in the Act or the Rules made thereunder. Apparently it was on the basis of the enabling provision contained under 235W the Secretary of the Grama Panchayat is conferred with powers under rule 134 of Rules, 2011. Thinking so in Ext.P6 the sole defect pointed out by the Secretary is non securing of orders under section 27A of the Act 2008 which has come into force on and w.e.f 30.12.2017 and therefore, having held that the said provision has no consequences to the case at hand, we are undoubtedly of the view that the additional construction made by the writ petitioner is susceptible to be corrected under the proviso to section 235W read along with rule 134 of Rules, 2011.