Expose stamp duty evasion, earn reward

To keep a check on owners who try to evade stamp duty by undervaluing their property, the Delhi government is examining a proposal to reward those who report such cases to them.

To keep a check on owners who try to evade stamp duty by undervaluing their property, the Delhi government is examining a proposal to reward those who report such cases to them.On an average, 20,000 properties are registered every month in the city. Undervaluation of property leads to major

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revenue losses to the government.

“Property owners should register their properties at the market value to avoid penalty. The penalty imposed can sometimes be even bigger than the cost of the property,” said Vijay Dev, secretary (revenue).

Several complaints of undervaluation by property owners have been registered in the north-west district. They are being examined.

According to sources, the government is planning to introduce a reward scheme for those who report cases of undervaluation of properties to the revenue department.

“In Delhi , a large chunk of properties are sold and re-sold as scope for constructing new properties is very limited. Hence, this becomes a major source of revenue for the government. And to ensure people report such cases to us they have to be given some incentive. We are looking into a proposal wherein they will be either given a cash reward or rebate,” said a senior Delhi government official.

Apart from penalising property owners, disciplinary action will also be taken against officials who adopt a pick and choose policy while dealing with cases of undervaluation of property.

“If an officer imposes penalty on one particular case of undervaluation but ignores another of similar nature, we will take action against them,” added the official.