BANGALORE: People with cars registered outside Karnataka approached the Supreme Court on Tuesday, seeking the court’s intervention. They want the court to annul the rule which makes it mandatory for them to pay Life Time Tax (LTT) if a car registered outside Karnataka has been plying in the state for 30 days or more.
An amendment to the Karnataka Motor Vehicles Taxation Act was made in February this year and the time period for the LTT exemption was changed to 30 days.
Based on the new rule, officers of the Transport Department have been conducting stringent checks and penalising car owners who have not paid tax according to the Act.
Waseem Memon, who started a Facebook page called ‘Justice for non-KA registration vehicle owners’, has been working to organise a protest against the amendment since it was introduced.
Memon is also part of the group that approached the court on Tuesday. He told Express, “Our demand is that the court must stay the amendment and remove the clause of 30 days’ time in order to provide us relief. There are many people who come here from other states to work for a year or less and then return. Most of the time, claiming refunds is a major problem.”
However, according to Transport Commissioner Ramegowda, striking down the amendment would pose a security risk for the state.
“Karnataka is a big state and many migrants stay for some days before leaving. We do not have any record of their vehicles and this can be a security risk for the state. I support the amendment and feel that whoever opposes it is going against the interests of Karnataka’s security,” he maintained.
Meanwhile, vehicle owners from other states are claiming that RTO officials are targeting and harassing them wielding the power of the amended Act.
“I can give many examples of harassment by RTO officials. There is a video on YouTube of a lady with a Swift car registered in Madhya Pradesh who was abused and her car was seized. There is another case in which RTO agents beat up a car owner with a car from Haryana,” Memon said. The group is full of instances where members narrate their experiences with the RTO.
Anandhu Karattuparambil was in for a rude shock on June 17 this year when, enroute from Pune to his hometown in Kerala, he was stopped in Bangalore. Anandhu had recently been posted to Bangalore from Pune and was yet to bring his car to the state. On July 17, RTO officials stopped him while he was entering Bangalore and demanded to see his documents.
Despite having toll receipts from Maharashtra issued the previous day, his car documents were seized and he was asked to pay LTT for the vehicle. According to him, the officials even took his office ID Card. Anandhu said “I was returning from Pune on July 15. I have produced the toll bills of Mahrarashtra, Belgum-Dharwad Expressway and Hubli-Dharwad Bypass. I showed them the Pollution Under Control certificate issued in Maharashtra, but they have not accepted anything”.
“I am still wondering why these government officials are against taxpayers and are treating us like aliens,” he told Express.
He believes that his documents were seized only because he had a Bangalore work and home address. “They did not believe me when I said I had been posted here only a week ago. Doesn’t the rule state that the car must ply on state roads for 30 days or more? Why were my documents seized? Now I cannot even drive my car,” he said.
Ramegowda said this might be an isolated case.
“If the person can provide us all the details that prove that the car was not plying in the state for more than 30 days, we will take steps against the RTO officer. We also check to see where the car has been insured. Our officials have been trained to consider all applicable laws and documents while checking,” the official said.
Meanwhile, the group has also sent petitions to the Chief Minister and had a meeting with the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha PJ Kurien as part of their efforts to get the amendment annulled.