Property tax case: MC barred from taking coercive steps

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 25

Issuing a notice of motion to the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation on a petition filed by the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, challenging “arbitrary” imposition of approximately Rs 8 lakh as penalty, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed against the initiation of the coercive action.

In the petition filed by the Committee through its General Secretary Capt Sandeep Singh Sandhu, the “arbitrary” and “harsh” order issuing recovery notices dated December 20, 2017, and February 21, 2018, were challenged. Its counsel Kanwalvir Singh Kang contended the petitioner was the owner of Punjab Congress Bhawan in Sector 15-A. It had been fastened with the liability to pay penalty and interest on the arrears of property tax for assessment years 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10.

The demand notice was issued after a lapse of more than 10 years. He said the demand or recovery notice, or bill towards the payment of property tax, was never received by the petitioner.

Kang added the petitioner has been paying property tax for assessment years for which bill was duly received. The petitioner earnestly paid principal amount of Rs 6, 48, 265, when its arrears came to notice. Despite its own lapse for being unable to raise demand notice for the last 10 years, the Corporation has now suddenly undertaken a harsh measure to recover penalty amount of Rs 8, 36, 681which was more than the principal amount.

Kang added the questions for consideration before the Bench were whether the civic body’s act of issuing demand notice after 10 years was legally sustainable; whether the Municipal Corporation could arbitrarily impose a penal liability without providing an opportunity of hearing to the petitioner and without deciding its application; whether the respondent corporation failed to adhere to the principles of natural justice and whether the act and conduct of the respondent corporation was in violations of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India?

Taking up the matter, the Bench of Chief Justice SJ Vazifdar and Justice Avneesh Jhingan asked the corporation to adjudicate the show-cause notices issued. “No coercive action shall be taken in view of the undertaking furnished on behalf of the petitioners that in the event of the Court directing the petitioners to pay any amount, the petitioners shall do so without compelling the respondent to execute the order, subject, of course, to their right to challenge the same. The undertaking is accepted and it is also so ordered,” the Bench added.