450 cheques to BBMP bounce

Property tax defaulters sent legal notices and given one more chance to pay up through demand drafts ONLY

Property tax defaulters sent legal notices and given one more chance to pay up through demand drafts ONLY

At last count, BBMP was left holding 450 dud cheques while collecting property tax after a gap of two years.

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is now mulling criminal action against the property owners.

BBMP headquarters File pic

"We have so far received over 450 cheques that bounced because of insufficient funds. These cheques amounted to about Rs 20 lakh," said Vasanth Rao, deputy commissioner (resources).

Some cheques were not honoured because of faulty signature and some were post-dated. But the BBMP is not planning to keep quiet about this and will take legal action against those whose cheques have bounced. "We have sent a notice to all of them. Some of them have repaid the taxes through demand drafts. Many have still not paid. We have sent the legal notice. If they do not pay by March 31, we will begin criminal proceedings," he said.

BBMP has set up a special cell at its head office to initiate prosecution proceedings against the guilty. It will also charge a legal fee from the defaulters. If a cheque is dishonoured, the taxpayer will have to pay through a demand draft only. BBMP asked taxpayers to write their names, full address and phone numbers on the reverse of the cheque. Else, cheques will not be accepted.

Beware: Touts at your doorstep

Some people have been visiting houses claiming to be BBMP officials and collecting money.

"We have not authorised any person or agency to collect property tax from people's doorsteps. They are going around saying they will help calculate the tax and fill the form. We suspect they are touts," said Vasanth Rao, deputy commissioner (resources).

This year, property tax is being collected through the Self Assessment System (SAS). "If someone else has to calculate your tax, then the whole meaning of SAS is lost. Calculating your tax is very easy. We have put up a calculator on our website. So far, two lakh people have used the calculator. Many have attached the printout to the forms too," he said.

To know the location and telephone number of the help desk in your area, call BBMP's 24-hour helpline 22222753/ 22276151. Visit www. bbmponline.org for details