The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has unveiled a list of the top 100 property tax defaulters, which includes significant institutions such as transport corporations and educational bodies. With unpaid taxes totalling INR 900 crore, these entities have ignored repeated notices from the BBMP, despite the One-Time Settlement (OTS) scheme offering a 50% waiver on interest and penalties. The BBMP is now intensifying efforts to recover these dues, threatening property seizures for non-compliance. The move targets significant defaulters across various city zones, aiming to restore much-needed revenue for Bengaluru's development.
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has revealed a list of the top 100 property tax defaulters, focusing on major institutions such as hotels, malls, educational establishments, and prominent builders. These entities owe taxes amounting to crores, with significant defaulters including the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, Bengaluru Metropolitan Rail Corporation Limited, the Transport Department, and the Karnataka Housing Board.
Given that property tax is BBMP's main revenue source, the widespread tax evasion by these influential entities poses a severe challenge. Despite repeated notices, these organisations have consistently failed to comply with their tax obligations. The collective debt from property owners who have evaded or underpaid their taxes over several years now stands at an alarming INR 900 crore. In response, the Revenue Department has intensified efforts to recover these dues, a crucial step toward stabilising the city's finances.
To facilitate tax recovery, BBMP introduced the One-Time Settlement (OTS) scheme, offering defaulters a 50% waiver on total interest and penalties. However, many property owners have shown little interest in settling their outstanding taxes, even with this generous concession. The BBMP extended the OTS scheme until September 30, providing more time for property owners to clear dues. As of 1 April 2024, unpaid taxes on 3,95,250 properties totalled INR 733.71 crore. By 29 July, only 1,07,344 owners had paid INR 184.76 crore, leaving INR 548.94 crore still outstanding from 2,87,906 owners.
Under the Self-Assessment Scheme (SAS), further investigation revealed that 16,904 properties had underpaid taxes by falsely declaring their actual building area or zone classification. BBMP's reassessment uncovered an additional INR 282.59 crore in unpaid taxes, exacerbating the city's revenue shortfall. In a determined effort to recover funds, BBMP Special Commissioner of the Revenue Department, Munish Moudgil, announced a list of the top 100 tax defaulters in each zone.
The BBMP urges these defaulters to pay by 30 September or face property seizures. For those who ignore the notices, the BBMP will initiate the attachment process by issuing Form-13 and registering the BBMP's name with the Sub-Registrar's office. The scale of outstanding tax liabilities is immense. The Bommanahalli zone faces INR 7.27 crore in unpaid taxes, with a reassessed liability of INR 2.73 crore. The Dasarahalli zone has INR 4.14 crore in outstanding taxes, with a reassessed liability of INR 5.14 crore.
The East zone faces an even greater burden, with INR 7.49 crore in unpaid taxes and a reassessed liability of INR 69.52 crore. Similarly, the Mahadevapura zone owes INR 4.74 crore in unpaid taxes, with a reassessed liability of INR 5.26 crore. The South Zone bears the heaviest burden, with INR 47.81 crore in unpaid taxes and an additional reassessed liability of INR 13.85 crore. Following closely, the RR Nagar zone owes INR 4.29 crore in unpaid taxes and a reassessed amount of INR 7 crore. BBMP's stringent measures aim to enforce compliance and recover these significant amounts, which are crucial for the city's ongoing development and infrastructure improvements.
The BBMP is facing a major challenge as many large institutions in Bengaluru, including government departments and businesses, have failed to pay their property taxes, leading to a massive debt of around INR 900 crore. Despite offering incentives like a 50% interest and penalty waiver through the One-Time Settlement (OTS) scheme, many defaulters have not paid up. The BBMP is now taking stricter actions, including property seizures, to recover these unpaid taxes, which are essential for funding the city's development and infrastructure projects.
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