In a credit-war between the coalition partners, the Punjab Government on Wednesday clarified that the power for the issuance of change-of-land-use (ClU) lies with the Housing Department, headed by Deputy Chief Minister and SAD president Sukhbir Badal, and it was he who had delegated this power to the local bodies department, headed by the BJP Minister.
The clarification came a day after the BJP MlA and local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi declared that his department has started the process of exempting industry, hotels and hospitals from paying ClU charges.
Maintaining that he was “competent” to take a decision in this regard and it was the “prerogative” of his department, Joshi took the decision without consulting or informing its alliance partner.
Joshi had recently raised a banner of revolt against the State Government and pressurized it to withdraw the ‘advance tax on stock’. The development assumes importance as the BJP has all along been accusing the SAD of not giving it a free hand.
The Government’s official spokesperson on Wednesday stated that some confusion had been created on the issue of exemption given to hospitals and hotels as far as levying of ClU charges were concerned.
“Deputy Chief Minister, who also holds Housing portfolio, had held a meeting in June this year to discuss why local bodies department had not implemented the decision to exempt hotels and hospitals from levying of ClU charges….he was desirous that the policy should be implemented uniformly and directed that this should be done immediately,” said the spokesperson adding that the officers from local Bodies department were also present in the meeting.
Clarifying the issue, the spokesperson said that considering that working of hospitals and hotels was on the pattern of industry and they should be treated as such, the Sukhbir-Kalia committee in 2009 — comprising Sukhbir Badal and the then BJP Minister Manoranjan Kalia — advocated doing away with levying of ClU charges from industry to give it a boost in a time of financial crunch and economic recession.
The spokesperson said that following this, hospitals and hotels were also declared as ‘industry’ and therefore eligible for zero ClU charges.
Joshi, a day before, maintained that he was under pressure from the business community to take this decision, and he would inform the State Government by official notification only when election code of conduct for the upcoming Assembly byelections in Patiala and Talwandi Sabo gets over on August 25. The ClU fee is five per cent of the collector’s rate of the land, that amounts approximately ` one crore for an acre.