3,000 shops leased sans stamp duty

THE BHOPAL Municipal Corporation (BMC) leased out 3,000 shops in the City without bothering to register documents with the office of district registrar, causing a good deal of monetary loss to the government exchequer.

THE BHOPAL Municipal Corporation (BMC) leased out 3,000 shops in the City without bothering to register documents with the office of district registrar, causing a good deal of monetary loss to the government exchequer.

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Over the years, local civic authorities leased out shops at different places without paying stamp duty to the government, forcing the district registrar to dash off a letter to the BMC. In the letter, the district registrar pointed out to the BMC administration the flouting of norms.

According to a conservative estimate, the BMC made the State Government poorer by Rs one crore by not paying the stamp duty.

The shops are situated in Sindhi Market, Azad Market, Nadra Bus Stand, Jumerati, Navbahar Sabji Mandi, Malviya Nagar, 12 No. Bus Stop, Shakti Nagar, TT Nagar Dussehra Maidan, Harshavardhan Complex, Tilak Market, New Market, Jawahar Chowk and Bairagarh.

Officers at District Registrar Office are quick to blame the BMC administration for the inaction on this count. They say that the BMC should register the documents even if it rent out shops for more than a year under Section 17 of the Registration Act.

For their part, the BMC officials say they would like to hold camps with the officers of the district registrar office for registration of the documents. However, officers of the district registrar office say that the BMC administration has not taken any initiative in this regard.

Claiming that the lease documents of only some shops were registered, the BMC revenue department officers concede that most shops still remain unregistered.