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Time of India
8 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Parking tax drive: Bengaluru lawyers say most flat owners have usage rights, not ownership
Bengaluru: Joining the growing criticism of over 31,000 showcause notices issued recently by Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), senior lawyers have highlighted loopholes in the civic body's decision to levy property tax on parking areas. Pointing out that usage rights do not amount to ownership, a number of lawyers told TOI that issuing notices was not a fair move by BBMP. "Recent notices issued by BBMP to individual flat owners seeking property tax on car parking spaces raise serious legal and procedural concerns. In most cases, the registered sale deed merely grants exclusive usage rights over parking, not ownership," said Prashanth Mirle, a real estate lawyer and a partner at India Law Practice. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru "As per RERA, such spaces form part of the common area and are required to be transferred to the association of allottees. Usage rights alone do not create an assessable property interest for municipal taxation," he added. Pointing to another loophole, the senior lawyer said: "These showcause notices are being raised with retrospective effect even though BBMP notification revising parking area rates was published on March 30, 2025. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like London's Fastest Broadband. Switch Today. Community Fibre Learn More Undo The notification does not have any provision on retrospective application. Taxing citizens for past years based on new or revised interpretations, without legal authority, violates Article 265 of the Constitution. " Another real estate lawyer urged BBMP to review its action. "In many cases, software inconsistencies during e-khata generation captured inflated or incorrect parking areas, leading to arbitrary assessments. These notices have led to confusion and anxiety among genuine homeowners. BBMP must immediately review its actions, correct systemic errors, and ensure no unlawful or retrospective demands are enforced against individual property owners," said the lawyer, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Srikanth Narasimhan, founder of Bharatiya Nava Nirman Party, told TOI, "The Supreme Court judgment is very clear that parking spaces are a part of the common area and cannot be sold by builders separately to the owners. These are, anyway, included in the common area, which is part of the super built-up area on which people are already paying tax; not sure how BBMP is making these claims." Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Raksha Bandhan wishes , messages and quotes !
The Hindu
11 hours ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
BNP demands withdrawal of BBMP's unjust property tax notices
The Bengaluru NavaNirmana Party (BNP) has criticised the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) for issuing property tax notices to thousands of citizens and the glitch-caught e-Nyaya portal. The BNP has called the move to send property tax notices 'arbitrary' and 'legally flawed', pointing out that it contradicts the Supreme Court rulings and statutory provisions under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, (RERA). The BNP leaders argued that the BBMP is wrongly attempting to tax stilt and open parking areas as standalone units, even though these spaces are considered part of common areas. Citing the Supreme Court's ruling in Nahalchand Laloochand Pvt. Ltd. vs. Panchali Cooperative Housing Society, the BNP highlighted that parking areas cannot be sold or taxed separately, as they are part of the building's shared amenities and included in the super built-up area. 'Most sale deeds grant only the exclusive right to use a parking spot; they do not confer ownership. Residents already pay tax on the super built-up area, which includes these common spaces,' said Srikanth Narasimhan, BNP founder. The BNP also pointed out that many apartment owners have been served retrospective tax notices, placing financial burdens on them. Adding to the frustration, the BBMP's e-Nyaya portal, meant for citizens to respond to notices, has been non-functional. Additionally, some AROs are reportedly refusing to accept responses by hand, leaving citizens without a way to appeal. 'In Bengaluru, the process has become the punishment,' said H.L.N. Prasad, BNP leader for E-khata. 'This fiasco reflects the chronic mismanagement in BBMP's revenue systems. Instead of fixing its internal processes, the BBMP is shifting the burden to law-abiding citizens,' he said.
Time of India
a day ago
- Business
- Time of India
‘This isn't e-nyaya, it's anyaya': BBMP's parking tax notices spark outrage over lawyer mandate, glitchy portal; citizens seek rollback, on-ground verification
Bengaluru residents are outraged by BBMP's parking-related show-cause notices, citing a cumbersome e-nyaya portal that demands unnecessary advocate details for filing objections. Citizens with e-khata are frustrated with additional tax demands and the portal's slow loading times. BENGALURU: The parking-related show-cause notices issued by BBMP allows a 15-day window to flat owners to file objections on the civic body's e-nyaya portal. But e-khata holders sore over BBMP's demand for additional taxes, are caught in a bureaucratic whirlpool: First, the portal takes an eternity to load. Second, once it does, it demands an e-KYC - including the name of an advocate representing the flat owner. "Why do I need a lawyer to file an objection?" asked a Whitefield resident. "I didn't hire a lawyer to pay tax in the first place." The cumbersome online procedure to file complaints has left citizens fuming, with a flat owner from Koramangala, S Lakshmi, saying, "This isn't 'e-nyaya' (justice), it's 'anyaya' (injustice)." She further said: "Why should I be forced to hire a lawyer and pay thousands more just to prove I haven't done anything wrong? This is mental harassment," she told TOI. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru Palike must conduct proper verification, say residents Srikanth Narasimhan, founder of Bengaluru Navanirman Party, echoed a similar sentiment. "I am unable to apply because it requires me to mention the name of my advocate and the petitioner. Now, where am I going to go and get all of that? Who is going to pay for these people? Will BBMP contribute to anything at all or just suck our blood?" Senior citizens say the move feels like betrayal. Hitting out at the appeals process, Kanakashekar Satyakumar, a 70-year-old retired bank employee, said: "It took me nearly 10 attempts a day just to get the appeal link to work, and when it finally did, it asked me for an advocate's name. Why should I pay extra and run around for BBMP's mistake?" Vani R, a Rajajinagar resident, pointed out the glaring inconsistency in records. "The builder never handed over a separate deed for parking. It was always part of the common area. Now BBMP is taxing it as if it's some commercial extension." Withdraw notices: Citizens Many residents have alleged that the civic body is using discrepancies between the e-khata and EPIC systems to generate inflated assessments and arbitrarily levy penalties. They are demanding that BBMP withdraw all such notices and take up a proper physical verification of properties. "This isn't about taxes, it's about trust," said Manjunath H, a tech professional from Bellandur. "If they [BBMP] make an error, we suffer. If we make a small one, we get fined. Is this governance or extortion?" Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and s ilver prices in your area.
New Indian Express
25-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
BNP demands BBMP withdraw unfair solid waste fee amid double billing complaints in Bengaluru
BENGALURU: Bengaluru Navanirmana Party has claimed that over 2,800 people across the city have expressed solidarity with them in objecting to BBMP in its campaign titled #IWontPay, against the new solid waste management user fee on citizens who neither generate the waste nor receive BBMP's services. 'This is exploitation. How can BBMP collect a fee without even knowing who should pay and who shouldn't? said Srikanth Narasimhan, founder of BNP. He said the 'bulk-waste generator' exemption was introduced around April 20, 2025, after backlash from citizens. By this time, thousands of residents who live in apartments classified as bulk-waste generators, had already paid the SWM fee. Many have made double payment, one to private vendors, and another to BBMP for doing nothing. Smaller apartment complexes (under 100 units) that use empanelled vendors are neither recognized as bulk generators nor given clarity, which again leads to double billing. Vacant plot owners have also been charged SWM fee despite producing no waste. 'How can BBMP justify billing people for a service it doesn't provide? There's no accountability, no communication, not even basic logic,' said Poongothai Paramasivan, Governing Council member of BNP. She added that without an elected BBMP Council, the government is unilaterally imposing new charges like parking fees and garbage user fees. BNP has submitted formal letters to Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, BBMP Chief Commissioner Maheshwar Rao, and Revenue Special Commissioner Munish Moudgil, demanding withdrawal of the SWM user fee, and full refund or adjustment of wrongly collected fees for all who have paid this year.
