BENGALURU: With Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) rolling out e-khata for properties, various flat owners‘ associations have raised concerns over what they say are “ambiguities in its legal and procedural framework” when it comes to apartment complexes.
E-khatas are geotagged but stacked flats share the same coordinates, making it challenging to verify individual compliance with building plans. They further said the current khata system has created dual ownership records, complicating land rights for apartment owners.
“The BBMP’s initiative to issue e-khatas to independent properties is a good idea. E-khatas are identified by geotagging, which identifies properties by latitude and longitude, which will be the same for flats which are one above the other in an apartment building. This khata will not clearly identify the property and will not clarify whether the building was constructed in violation of the building plan or on a valid sanction plan,” Srinivasa Talla, representing Bangalore City Flat Owners’ Welfare Association, told TOI.
With BBMP sending messages to property owners to get their e-khatas, flat owners are restive. The associations point out that properties must be classified as buildings, vacant land, or both, to be subject to property tax under Section 142(1)(a) of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations (KMC) Act.
Paying property taxes is the responsibility of property owners, but flat owners hold an undivided share of the land, which remains in the landowner’s name. Without land being divided, BBMP or other local bodies lack authority to issue sub-khatas, as partitioning is not permitted under the apartment ownership scheme, they argue.
“Even after khatas for flats are being created in their owners’ names, the land khata is still held by the landowners/promoters in the revenue records. With both flat owners and landowners being reflected as owners, there is dual ownership. BBMP has not found the solution for the land khata bifurcation process or notified the public about it. What property owners demand is a proper khata that protects the land rights of flat owners. Why should property owners pay property tax for property they don’t own in BBMP records?” asked Dhananjaya Padmanabhachar, sanchalak of Karnataka Home Buyers Forum.E-khatas available to flats: BBMP
The civic body, meanwhile, says e-khata is available for all property types, including apartments, through an online application process.
“Residents of apartments can obtain an e-khata just like any other property owner. The process is accessible online, where they can directly apply through the official website. For those who already have a physical khata, it is digitised. If you already have a physical khata as an apartment, then you can immediately get e-khata. But if it’s a new apartment complex where khatas haven’t yet been issued manually, then new ones will be issued in the next 10-15 days,” said Munish Moudgil, special commissioner (finance), BBMP.
