Property Tax Corporation of Chennai
Querist :
Anonymous
(Querist) 25 July 2011
This query is : Resolved
I have been paying property taxes regularly but since 2009, the cheques sent to the the Corporation of Chennai have remained un-cashed. The bill collector refuses to accept payment. I therefore asked for the current Annual Value under RTI and found that the tax I am paying is correct. I have not received any new property tax demand notice or notice of revision under Section 137 B. The Metrowater Chennai will not accept payments unless I show the receipt for property tax for the current half-year. What legal recourse can I take to resolve this problem? I have also placed complaints on the Corporation website to no avail.
R.Ramachandran
(Expert) 25 July 2011
Or how do you make the payment - Are you going to the Municipal Corporation's office and remitting the cheque or are you only sending the cheque by post?
Or is there any online facility for you to make the payment?
When you make the payment by cheque (assuming that you are making payment by visiting the Corporation's office concerned), are they not issuing you a Receipt saying that the payment is subject to realisation?
Things are not very clear. Please clarify.
Querist :
Anonymous
(Querist) 25 July 2011
I used to go directly to the office to give the cheque until 2009 and they would give me a receipt. When I went to pay the cheque for the second-half of 2009, the bill collector would not accept the cheque. The bill collector visted my house in 2009 and said things like, if I revised the tax now your annual value will be very very high. At which point I said, well I am paying what has been assessed and is on your website and showed him a copy of the website. After that, he went to his office and removed all my records on the web and blocked payment.
Since I did not want to be penalised by the Corporation, or harassed by this bill collector and revenue officer since then I have been sending cheques by registered post with acknowledgement due. I have all the cheque numbers and proof of posting. However, none of the cheques sent since 2009 have been encashed.
Meanwhile, the Metrowater Chennai had the wrong annual value (twice as much as the current annual value) and for over a decade had been sending me demand notices for exhorbidant amounts. I finally applied under RTI to verify the current annual value last year. I found that the annual value for which I was paying the property tax was not changed and I was paying the correct amount. So I went to the Metrowater Offices and settled all the arrears until Dec. 2010. When I went to pay the water tax and charges for the current half-year, the metrowater guy told me the Corporation of Chennai has blocked my records.
I consulted a lawyer and I was told that the Corporation of Chennai cannot revise taxes for only my house in my street.If they wanted to do that, they will have to give a reason for the revision and notice under Section 137 B. Otherwise they would have to undertake revision of taxes for the entire locality.
I have checked the website and records for all my neighbours and their records are intact since 1993. Some houses had revisions in 1998 and some houses have been paying the same rate since 1993. During the 1993 assessment of my property tax, the tax was hiked so high that I went to court to the Tax Appeals Committee and after a two year case won the appeal.I got the corrected annual value on the Property Tax Demand notice in January 1996.
R.Ramachandran
(Expert) 25 July 2011
Better make a Detailed Complaint to the Commissioner of Chennai Corporation, with a copy to the Zonal Head, under registered ACK Due post.
Is there any Residents' welfare Assocition for your area? If so, approach them also.
Separately, you can send a RTI Application seeking whether your account has been blocked and if so the reason therefor; and whether any communication about the blocking of your account was sent to you and if so the copy thereof.
Whether the Cheques with Nos. date and amount, sent by you by Registered post (give details of date of Regd. post and to whom it was addressed - you can also enclose a copy of the same) have been encashed - and if not the reason therefor.
Querist :
Anonymous
(Querist) 25 July 2011
Thank you very much. I will do so.
