The Kerala High Court recently opined that the collection of parking fees by Lulu International shopping mall was not appropriate while perusing a couple of pleas that the shopping mall collecting parking fees from its customers was illegal.
The Court directed the Municipality to file a statement on its definite stand whether a parking fee can be collected for a parking space mandatory under Building Rules.
It was also observed that further collection of parking fees by lulu was subject to the result of this writ petition. However, it was clarified that in the meanwhile, they can collect such fee at their risk.
The first petition was moved by a social worker Bosco Louis who appeared as a party in person.
Another petition was moved by film director Pauly Vadakkan after he was charged Rs. 20 as parking fees when he visited the mall on December 2. Vadakkan had alleged that the mall staff closed the exit gates and threatened him when he initially refused to pay the amount.
It was contended that collecting parking fees was a blatant violation of the Kerala Municipality Act and Kerala Municipality Building Rules 1994 since as per the rules, the mall is a commercial complex and the place earmarked in the approved building plan for parking cannot be converted into a pay & park facility. If any conversion is made, that is a fraud on the statute and unsustainable in the eye of the law, the petitioner had submitted.
The petition contended that parking fees were being collected by the mall since 2010 and that this had to be recovered by the government. Accordingly, the plea has sought a declaration that collection of parking fees by the mall was illegal apart from a refund of the Rs. 20 collected from the petitioner.
In 2019, Delhi high courtsought the stand of theSouth Delhi Municipal Corporation(SDMC) on a plea alleging that it had failed to check some city malls from chargingillegal parking fees. The petition argued that in the Master Plan for Delhi, 2021, it was clarified that hospitals and malls in the city could not levy any parking charges from visitors, but SDMC only issued notices to a few malls and private hospitals for violating the master plan adding that "such notices were nothing but an eyewash as no action was taken against such erring malls and hospitals". Puri's plea said that malls in Saket and Vasant Kunj, including Select City and Ambience, have regularly flouted SDMC circulars with the civic agency hardly taking any action. Last year, disposing of Puri's plea an HC bench had taken note of SDMC's claim that "parking space in the commercial complexes/malls/hospitals has to be utilised free of any charge and cannot be put to commercial use by levying parking fees for the same".
In the year 2019, Gujarat High Court ruled that malls and multiplexes should not collect parking fees as they are under a statutory obligation to provide car parking space. Malls, multiplexes, shopping establishments etc., have to provide parking to the customers without collecting any fee from them. The court reached the conclusion based on the interpretation of provisions in Gujarat building and town planning laws.
Subsequently, the Supreme Court, on 15 October 2019, permitted all malls and multiplexes to take "reasonable" parking fees from visitors after providing them free parking for one hour.
Last year, the Karnataka High Court refused to entertain a plea seeking free car parking spaces in malls and multiplexes. "Somebody incurs a cost for maintaining the parking space at a cinema hall. How can it be free?", the Karnataka High Court had orally observed, after which the petitioner chose to withdraw the petition.
In totality, the question still remains ambiguous –MALLS CAN COLLECT CAR PARKING FEE??
Originally published January 15, 2022
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