Hon'ble Judges/Coram:
L. Nageswara Rao and Hemant Gupta

JUDGMENT

L. Nageswara Rao, J.

Leave granted.

1. The width and amplitude of the expression 'commercial site' in Section 2(5) and Section 81(1)(q) of the Kerala Land Reforms Act, 1963 (for short, "the Act"), falls for our consideration in these Appeals. Commercial sites are exempted from the purview of the Act. The question whether a rocky land which is used for quarrying purposes can be treated as a 'commercial site' and thereby excluded from the applicability of the Act was answered by a learned Single Judge of the Kerala High Court by holding that mere blasting of rocks and conversion into metals does not render the area a 'commercial site'.¹ Twenty years after the said judgment, a Division Bench of the Kerala High Court took a different view. Quarrying was held to be a commercial operation involving the process of manufacture. Hence, it was held that a quarry falls within the ambit of 'commercial site' and is exempted from the applicability of the Act.²

2. The Appellant requested environmental clearance for his quarry which was recommended in his favour by the District Expert Appraisal Committee (DEAC) on 25.04.2017. Respondents No. 1 and 2 filed a Writ Petition aggrieved by the said recommendation to permit quarry on land which was a plantation site. It is relevant to note that the Appellant's land was exempted from the realm of the Act as it was a plantation. The objection of Respondent No. 1 and 2 was that the Appellant cannot be permitted to use the land for a purpose other than plantation, especially for quarrying operations. After examining the judgments of the High Court in K. Krishnankutty v. State of Kerala and Ors. (supra) and State of Kerala v. Mohammedali Haji (supra), a learned Single Judge of the High Court of Kerala doubted the correctness of the latter judgment in State of Kerala v. Mohammedali Haji (supra) and referred the matter to a larger Bench.

3. The Writ Petition filed by Respondent No. 1 and 2 was heard by a Full Bench of the Kerala High Court comprising three Judges. The majority opinion was in favour of Respondent No. 1 and 2. It was held by the majority that the land which is used for quarrying is not covered........