Mumbai: BMC Initiates Legal Action Against Property Tax Defaulters With Bounced Cheques

The BMC has initiated legal action against property tax defaulters whose cheques bounced. Dishonour of a cheque is a criminal offence and punishable by both imprisonment and fine. 

As per data till March 31, 2024, 892 cheques deposited in the bank in the last financial year, amounting to Rs43.54 crore, bounced. Most defaulters were builders and owners of commercial premises and societies, according to civic sources. The BMC sent notices to all these defaulters under the Negotiable Instruments Act and recovered Rs37.83 crore from 853 of them in the past few months. However, warnings to 38 have gone unheeded. 

BMC's Stringent Measures Against Property Tax Defaulters

As per data from the assessor and collection department, around 3,945 properties have been attached worth over Rs2,237 crore since 2010. After facing a severe cash crunch during the pandemic, the civic authorities started cracking down on property tax defaulters. Despite not having sufficient balance, the defaulters issued cheques to avoid BMC intervention in attachment of properties for non-payment.

Property tax is the second-highest revenue source of the BMC. The BMC managed to collect Rs3,195 crore as property tax, which is Rs1,300 crore short of the Rs4,500 crore target set for the 2023-24 fiscal.