Bereft of stamp duty payment details, MHADA lottery winners forced to visit office repeatedly

The MHADA lottery flat winners have been forced to visit the office again and again, primarily because of the confusion surrounding the stamp duty and registration payments for the houses

MUMBAI: At around 1.30 pm, the queue of people outside Room 147 of the MHADA headquarters at Bandra East was beginning to get restive. At the housing authority’s office to pay stamp duty for the houses they had won in the 2023 MHADA lottery, they had been cooling their heels for a long time—the office had opened at 10 am but had reached only Token Number 3.

Mumbai, India - Dec. 11, 2023: People standing in an queue outside MAHADA office, Bandra, in Mumbai, India, on Monday, December 11, 2023. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times)

People milled around, peeking into the office every now and then. Some had been waiting since 10 am without food and water; a few, resting their heads against the wall, had nodded off. “The long line is not unusual,” said the watchman on duty. “But the office is overburdened today, as it was closed on Friday.”

The MHADA lottery flat winners have been forced to visit the office again and again, primarily because of the confusion surrounding the stamp duty and registration payments for the houses. Their complaint is that MHADA, which has started giving possession of 4,082 flats to the Mumbai winners, has failed to mention the stamp duty and registration amounts in the ‘Post-Lottery’ section of its website or its draft allotment letters. HT has a copy of the letter.

Vikas, a winner of a MHADA flat under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, said that the amounts were not mentioned online either. “Although the eSBTR (e-Secured Electronic Secure Bank and Treasury Receipt) process is online, MHADA has not told us how much we need to pay for the stamp duty, registration and metro tax,” he said.

Winners said that on reaching the MHADA office, they were asked to visit Room 147 on the first floor, which people have been visiting for days to either understand the process, get the exact amounts to be paid or collect the receipts after stamp duty and registration payments. “Room 147 has long queues, and no one there gives us proper answers,” said Vikas. “I still do not know some details that I need to feed in the eSBTR form, hence I cannot do it online by myself.”

HT visited the MHADA office over a few days; the office where information is given out had no mention of the stamp duty and registration amounts. The amounts are different for different flats, depending on the category, cost and size. The draft allotment letter and online process also had no information on these.

When contacted, Sanjeev Jaiswal, CEO of MHADA, said he had not been informed about the lacunae. “I will check and get this resolved soon,” he said.

Milind Borikar, chief officer of MHADA’s Mumbai Board, claimed the information had been given out in the draft allotment letters and was under the ‘Quick Links’ section of the MHADA website. When HT informed him that the information was not available in the letters, he said he would get this verified.

Another official, responsible for the online process, said, “We cannot give it in writing because the stamp duty amount to be paid has to be given by the state government. We sat with government officials and made the information available under the ‘Quick Links’ section on our website.” When asked whether this information was sent to the winners or displayed in MHADA offices, the official said, “I will get this rectified, and we will ensure that notices on the procedure and amount are displayed in our offices.”

VOICES

‘We’re waiting here for hours’

Nikita Kadam

I came here last Thursday to enquire about the stamp duty, and I was told I could pay the amount online. I paid it through a bank transfer, and now I’m here again to collect the certificate. I’ve been standing here since 10 am with token number 20, but it’s not even clear which token number is currently being attended to at 2 pm.

Avijit Paul

I came here at around 10 am to pay stamp duty and was given token number 14. I had come previously too, as I hadn’t received my draft allotment letter after I paid for the house. Then I came again on Thursday, when I was told I could come on Monday to pay the stamp duty. I’ve been standing here for hours, and nothing has moved.

Amrut Kumar

First the server was down, and now the room has been taken over by mill workers. The counters in the room are a mess. I’ve already paid my stamp duty online, after coming twice before and on Friday, and all I need is to get the stamp duty certificate, for which I’ve been waiting for hours. The whole process is online, so why isn’t this part also online?

Sanjay Salonke

I got my allotment letter on Thursday, and then I paid the stamp duty of ₹62,100 online. Today, I came at around 10 am for the certificate, and I was given token number 15. But it’s nearly 3 pm now, and I’m still waiting.