Mohali: Income tax dept spots lapses in reporting of ₹18k-cr property deals

The directorate has given 15 days to revenue officers to file their Statement of Financial Transaction (SFT) and correct their financial record, failing which penal action will be initiated against the state revenue officers

The Intelligence and Criminal Investigation (I&CI) Directorate of the income tax department, Chandigarh, on Thursday conducted a survey at the office of the tehsildar in Kharar, uncovering irregularities in reporting property transactions worth over ₹18,000 crore.

As per rules, all property transactions above ₹30 lakh must be reported to the income tax department, along with the names, PAN and Aadhaar details of buyers and sellers. (HT Photo for representation)

The directorate has given 15 days to revenue officers to file their Statement of Financial Transaction (SFT) and correct their financial record, failing which penal action will be initiated against the state revenue officers.

During physical checks, officials compared data from the state registry software with records submitted by the tehsildar to the income tax department. It was found that several high-value property transactions running into crores were either not reported or were furnished with incorrect details.

As per rules, all property transactions above ₹30 lakh must be reported to the income tax department, along with the names, PAN and Aadhaar details of buyers and sellers. However, in many cases, tehsildars allegedly submitted incomplete information, often without PAN numbers, making it impossible for the department to verify identities or assess whether due taxes were paid.

This is not a one-off exercise. Similar surveys have already been conducted in Khanna, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Mohali, Fazilka and other areas of Punjab. However, the corrective measures are not being taken by the state registry officials due to which the department was constrained to conduct enforcement actions. The department has also been conducting awareness seminars and outreach programmes for tehsildars so that they understand their responsibility in filing the correct information. However, many tehsildars still continue to give incorrect reports to the department, it said in a release.

The I&CI Directorate has been carrying out such surveys across the state to ensure accurate reporting of high-value property transactions and to curb tax evasion. According to officials, these enforcement drives, coupled with awareness efforts, are aimed at widening the tax base and strengthening compliance.