House tax: Civic body serves notices on 2K defaulters

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 1

For the first time, the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has issued notices to over 2,000 residents of Sectors 16 and 22 for not paying the house tax amounting over Rs 3 crore over the years.

Sources said the notices had been issued after they were found defaulters in the provisional list prepared during the GIS survey conducted by a company engaged by the civic body.

While the MC has been issuing notices to the defaulters of house tax of the commercial properties but no such notices had ever been issued to defaulters of residential properties.

Sources said the survey of the residential property was likely to be completed in March.

An official of the MC said the civic body would send notices to all such defaulters found in the survey.

Sources said the notices had been served under Section 138 of the Municipal Act, which authorises the Commissioner to attach, sale or seal the property of the tax defaulters.

An officer of the department said though the department had recovered over Rs 4 crore of the arrears in the recent past, more than Rs 12 crore was still pending against the defaulters.

Recently, the Municipal Corporation has issued a notice to the PGI also for paying a sum of Rs 6,82,99,735 pending against the institute as outstanding property tax.

A week after the MC served notices to political parties for not paying property tax, the Chandigarh unit of the Congress has decided to deposit the tax. The MC had issued notices to the Congress Bhawan, Sector 35; Punjab Congress, Sector 15; Chandigarh BJP office, Sector 33; and Punjab BJP office in Sector 37 recently.

While approximately Rs 15,52,000 is pending against the Punjab Congress Bhawan, Rs 4,63,599 is pending against the Chandigarh Congress Bhawan. The Punjab BJP has been served the notice for depositing the amount of Rs 16,72,000, while the Chandigarh BJP has been told to pay around Rs 7 lakh.

Sources said Pradeep Chhabra, president, Chandigarh Congress, today met officials of the MC over the notice.

He said: “We will deposit the tax after clarifying certain discrepancies in the notice.”

A week on, Cong to pay tax

A week after the MC served notices to political parties for not paying property tax, the Chandigarh unit of the Congress has decided to deposit the tax. The MC had issued notices to the Congress Bhawan, Sector 35; Punjab Congress, Sector 15; Chandigarh BJP office, Sector 33; and Punjab BJP office in Sector 37 recently.

Chhabra meets MC officials

Sources said Pradeep Chhabra, president, Chandigarh Congress, on Monday met officials of the MC over the notice. “We will deposit the tax after clarifying certain discrepancies in the notice,” he said.