Senior HC advocate warns of legal battle against imposition of stamp duty on agricultural loans

“The Kodagu farmers have to pay Rs 1500 per lakh of the loan amount, this is ridiculous as the growers have to visit the sub-registrar office several times," said the advocate.

Express illustration for representational purposes only.

MADIKERI: Kodagu Growers’ Federation and several other growers’ associations from the district have written to the Karnataka government several times requesting sanction of loans through the FRUITS app without being forced to pay the stamp duty.

However, these requests have not been considered even as Senior HC advocate and KPCC Legal Cell president AS Ponanna has cautioned of a legal battle to solve the issue.

“Due to non-registration of Form-3 declaration and mortgage papers in the Fruits application of primary agricultural cooperative societies in Kodagu district, farmers are being unnecessarily burdened to pay a stamp duty of 1.5 per cent of the loan amount to get zero interest agricultural loan facility. This injustice is being done to the farmers and the same needs to be rectified immediately,” demanded AS Ponanna.

While the cooperative societies of the district were submitting Form-3 declarations for disbursement of agricultural loans for coffee crops through the FRUITS app, the same facility was suspended as coffee was mentioned as a commercial crop. While the government extends crop loans at zero per cent interest for up to Rs 3 lakh, the growers of the district have to pay 1.5 per cent stamp duty to avail of this zero per cent loan.

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“The farmers have to pay Rs 1500 per lakh of loan amount and this is ridiculous as the growers have to frequent the sub-registrar office several times alongside paying the stamp duty. The farmers of Chikmagalur and Hassan are availing of the facility by submitting Forum 3 to the sub-registrar office without any stamp duty.

Why are farmers of Kodagu discriminated?” questioned Ponanna. He has demanded the state to immediately resolve the issue, failing which he has cautioned to address the matter legally.