By Syed Zainulabedin, TwoCircles.net,
Hyderabad: The VIII Nizam of Hyderabad Prince Mukarram Jah Bahadur, Multimillionaire Member of Parliament T. Subbarami Reddy, MIM MLAs Virasat Rasool Khan and Mumtaz Ahmed Khan, various corporates, social organisations, hotels, and even hospitals and educational institutions of the city are among the 100 top property tax defaulters in Hyderabad.
Efforts of cash strapped Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to collect the long due amount in crores of rupees yielded no results as most of the defaulters in order to avoid payment of their dues went to courts challenging the GHMC on one or the other pretext.
Prince Mukarram Jah Bahadur
According to sources in GHMC, the highest amount Rs.13 crores 17 lakhs 60.682 is due and pending from a company Hyderabad Asbestos. Among other major defaulters are Lake Plaza Hotel & Resorts (Rs.6.95.10.176), Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences (Rs.4.20.10.055), Anupama Enterprises (Rs.3.21.88000), Rajya Sabha Member T. Subbarami Reddy (3.31.53000), Premier Educational Institution Sultan Ul Uloom Educational Society (Rs.2.12.51.699), Indo – Arab League (Rs.1.67.34.110), GVK’s Taj Krishna Hotel (Rs.83.86000), MIM MLA from Nampally Virasat Rasool Khan (Rs.79.24.323), Kammenini Hospital (Rs.71.11.549), AP Film Development Corporation (Rs.55. 51.576) ,Hyderabad Stock Exchange( Rs.52. 08 272), Hyderabad Exhibition Society (Rs.28.81.554), Nawab Barkat Ali Khan alias Mukarram Jah Bahadur ( Rs.28.33.251), Hyderabad Public School (Rs.20.47 782 ), United News of India (Rs.26.47,392) and MIM MLA from Yakutpura (Rs. 20.98,341).
T. Subbarami Reddy
Acknowledging the fact that some big shots of the city owe crores of rupees in property taxes, Chief Valuation Officer of the GHMC, S. Pankaja said that every year we served the notices to the defaulters whose total comes to Rs.275 crores, but they just ignore and most of the money that runs in to crores is due to the fact that they owed these taxes for many years and that includes penalty and interest levied on them for failing paying taxes on time. All development work in the city is done from the revenue the GHMC generated through various forms of taxes and property taxes are the main source, he said.
Virasat Rasool Khan
Most defaulters or properties involved in tax evasion are from city’s posh and commercial areas like Jubilee Hills and Banjara Hills. The GHMC is ruled by MIM presently in alliance with Congress party and this issue is likely to come up in the budget meeting of the corporation to be held on February 18. TDP floor leader S. Srinivas Reddy alleged that some officials are colluded with defaulters and spare them, it causes a huge loss to civic body and hampers the development work in the city.
Mumtaz Ahmed Khan
T. Krishna Babu, Commissioner GHMC said majority of the property owners are prompt in paying their taxes. There are few hundreds who defy and avoid payments. We give incentives to those who pay taxes regularly, waive the penalty and interest in some cases and hope people and institutions will come forward and pay their dues before April 1, the last day of paying property taxes.
Many citizens complained that GHMC have a double standard for collecting property and trade taxes. The leave the “Big Sharks” and catches small fishes from the pond. Mohammad Ali of Purani Haveli in the old city says a lot of affluent people are very shewred when it comes to paying taxes and GHMC harassed common and poor people. Another citizen from Khairtabad .K.S.Rao asked why the GHMC didn’t initiate action against these defaulters as they are due crores of rupees from so many years. Anita Reddy a private school teacher wonders a prestigious institution like Hyderabad Public School in Begumpet and whose Alumni includes Chief Minister K. Kiran Kumar Reddy owed lakhs of rupees to our civic body.”What message this school is giving to our new generation” she smilingly asked.