BENGALURU: In a move that would benefit thousands of buyers of a Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) site from the original allottee before the lease period expires, the state government has come out with a specific provision to make the ownership legal.
In a notification on Thursday, the Urban Development Department issued rules to amend the Bangalore Development Authority (Allotment of Sites) Rules 1984. The gazette notification in this connection will be out soon.
BDA Commissioner N Jayaram told TNIE, “Some BDA site owners in the past have sold their sites despite the rule that they cannot do so until a lapse of ten years from the date of purchase. The allottee only has a lease-cum-sale deed which is handed over to the purchaser. However, this is not valid legally as the Absolute Sale Deed for the site is still in the possession of BDA. This will be handed over to the original owner only a decade after purchase.”
As per the new rules, the purchaser needs to pay 25% of the guidance value that was prevalent at the time of the purchase of the site to the BDA to receive the Absolute Sale Deed. This document ensures regularisation of the site.
The new rules announced by the government will be called the Bangalore Development Authority (Allotment of Sites) (Amendment) 2024, says the notification issued by the Under Secretary of the Urban Development Department. It has inserted the new provision under Rule 14, subrule (2).
Another official said as per the earlier rule in this regard, the purchaser had to pay 25% of the site value and this amount had to be determined by the state government.
“The file seeking to regularise the site would go to the government and it would take time for the amount to be finalised. Moreover, the purchaser will be in the dark as to how much has to be paid. This new rule will enable the purchaser to have a clear idea on the actual amount to be paid to regularise the site,” he explained. It would goad them to come forward to legalise it if the amount is affordable.
Another senior official said, “From the time of inception, thousands have sold their sites before the lease period to others. This will benefit them and the clarity established now will give them an opportunity to legalise the sale.”
The Absolute Sale Deed is crucial to sell the property in future, to mobilise funds by mortgaging the site to banks or other financiers or even to transfer the site in the name of others, he added.