Ludhiana MC catches 95 banks evading property tax; imposes penalty
The municipal corporation (MC) has penalised 95 banks, operating in rented buildings in the city, after these were found evading property tax. The bank managements or property owners are required to pay 7.5% of the annual rent as property tax but these banks had been deliberately showing a lower amount on the rent deed to save up on tax.
The MC has served notices to the defaulters, asking them to pay up the tax along with 100% penalty on the amount evaded.
As per information, there are 360 banks in the four MC zones of the city. Out of this, the civic body has scrutinised the tax returns of 225 banks. So far, the MC has caught 28 banks evading tax in Zone-A, 38 banks in Zone B, 17 in Zone C and 12 in Zone D. The MC is expected to recover around ₹2.2 crore from these banks and its property owners.
Zone-D superintendent Rajeev Bhardwaj said that notices have been served to the bank authorities and building owners to submit the tax along with penalty or be ready to face action.
Zone-C superintendent Vivek Verma said, “After completing the process of scrutinising the rent deeds of banks, we will also be checking the rent deeds of insurance companies being operated from rental properties.”
The MC is also serving notices to religious organisations that have set up shops on the boundaries of their premises and given it out on rent. Further, notices are also being served to government departments, including Zila Parishad and bus stand.
The MC is struggling to meet the annual recovery target under the head of property tax as the civic body has only recovered around ₹70 crore against the target of ₹130 crore for the financial year 2020-21. MC commissioner Pardeep Sabharwal had earlier warned officials of strict departmental action if they failed to achieve the targets.