Both the Congress and BJP leaders on Wednesday criticised the UT Administration for "exorbitantly" increasing the property tax levied on private residential and commercial units in Chandigarh. 

In a statement, senior Congress leader and Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari criticised the UT Administration for exorbitantly increasing the property tax levied on private residential and commercial units. Tewari said that a table agenda to increase property tax was brought before the General House of the Municipal Corporation (MC) on February 17 and it was subsequently withdrawn before it could even be deliberated upon. “How can property tax be levied by the MC without the House being given a chance of even discussing it, much less passing it?” he questioned.

“This is tantamount to subverting the constitutional mandate of the MC House,” he said, and added that had the House rejected the table agenda, even then under Section 423 of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act-1976, a show-cause notice had to be issued by the government to the House through the MC commissioner before any proceedings are annulled or modified or held to be illegal.

“What has happened is a complete travesty, if not a perverse illegality. The MC must uphold its constitutional remit and the power given to it under the Constitution of India,” he said.

After presiding over a meeting with party leaders, senior BJP leader and Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla said that party Councillors unanimously condemned the tax hike, calling it an unfair financial burden on the citizens of Chandigarh. This decision was taken without proper consultation or approval from the House, making it a clear violation of democratic norms. BJP State President Jatinder Pal Malhotra said, “We strongly oppose this unjust and arbitrary tax increase. It has been implemented without proper consultation and places an undue burden on the people of Chandigarh. We demand that this decision be rolled back immediately.”

Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Congress has decided to gherao the MC office on Friday to protest against the unprecedented hike in property tax. City Congress president HS Lucky said the hike was an outright exploitation of the public. He accused the local BJP unit of being complicit in the Administration’s decisions. “After an exorbitant increase in the collector rates, this sudden spike in property tax will add to the financial strain on residents. This is nothing short of daylight robbing of the residents’ hard-earned money,” said Lucky.