BENGALURU: In an attempt to waive taxes and favour some builders, BBMP officials of Yelahanka, East and other zones have quoted rules of the Karnataka Municipal Act which do not even exist, BJP councillor Padmanabha Reddy pointed out in the council of Tuesday.
Citing the example of East West Hotel judgement, in Yelahanka, the councilor said that the BBMP officials waived taxes of Rs 251 crore from eight hotels, by quoting KMC Act 108 (A)-14-E. There is no such clause in the law.
This revelation caught Mayor M Goutham Kumar and BBMP Commissioner B H Anil Kumar by surprise, and made the two top heads of the corporation search through the papers submitted to the council and the KMC rule book.
After a thorough scan of the rule book, the Commissioner admitted that there is no such rule and that it was an error by the officials.
Some councillors tried to brush aside the issue, stating that it could be a typo, but Reddy countered that the same documents were submitted to the courts too and so there could not be any errors. He also pointed out that another BBMP official in Bommanahalli used another rule of the KMC Act to help the tax violators.
Admitting the lapses, the Mayor ordered for a detailed report and investigation.