Delhi HC: Legal Validity Of New House Tax Laws Challenged

Delhi HC: Legal Validity Of New House Tax Laws Challenged 1/24/2009 The Delhi High Court issued notices to the Centre, Delhi government, the MCD and the NDMC on a petition filed by the Airport Authority of India and others challenging the legality of the new Municipal Laws that govern the house tax computation by the unit area method. A bench comprising Justices A K Sikri and Suresh Kait issued the notices to the respondents and asked them to file their reply by January 29. Some petitioners, including the AAI and a retired DG of police have challenged the Constitutional validity of the new property tax computing system evolved by the Delhi Municipal Corporation in the Delhi High Court. The NCT in 2003 amended the laws, which changed the method of computing the property tax from the standard or reasonable rent to unit area method (prevalent rates). The new system started functioning from April 2004. The Airport authority has urged the court that they should be exempt from the new laws till the final outcome of the case as the amount demanded was exhorbitant and violative of basic principles. The petitioner, Vinod Krishan Kaul, a retired Director-General of Police, and eight others have filed a petition in the High Court stating that the amendment done by the Government of the NCT (National Capital of Delhi) is violative as it is not empowered to amend any previous act which was formulated by the Central Government. The NCT before attaining an independent status had the Central laws--Delhi Municipal Act,1957 and the Delhi Rent Control Act,1958 which-- which used to govern the property tax in the capital, The lawyer of Mr Kaul contended that the NCT could not make amendments in any laws which were passed by the Central Government. By the present tax system the petitioner has to pay almost nine to ten times higher than the earlier house tax. The rebate given to old properties is 50 per cent flat rate irrelevant of the fact that the property may be as old as 300 years. UNI

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