Flat owners in several apartment complexes in Mahadevapura have been facing an uphill battle trying to get their khata — a revenue document required to calculate property tax. Long after the apartment complexes in Whitefield were issued occupancy certificates (OCs), and all flats sold and occupied, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is yet to bifurcate the properties and issue khatas to individual flat owners.
Whitefield Rising has taken up the cudgels for the beleaguered residents and launched a campaign, Khata Bhagya Beku. Representatives had recently written to senior BBMP officials, highlighting the fact that 19 apartment complexes with 3,057 flats are yet to be issued A-khata.
Some flat owners have been waiting for the document for as long as two years. Several attempts by flat owners have been met by direct or indirect demands for bribe, claim representatives of Whitefield Rising. They alleged that when they refused to do so, civic officials threatened to conduct a survey of the land again.
Ramdev Kota, a resident of Saroj Symphony apartment at Nagaondanahalli, said his apartment complex with 212 flats got an OC in January 2016, but to date, not a single flat owner has got the khata. “When we approached the civic body, officials said they had to resurvey the land — this after the OC was given,” he said. The BBMP did conduct a resurvey, but is yet to issue khatas.
“We were once asked to pay ₹25,000 per flat to get the khata. The revenue official changed mid way and the amount was reduced to ₹10,000 per flat. We, however, refused to pay the bribe,” Mr. Kota alleged.
Sohan (name changed), who lives in another apartment complex and has had similar experiences, expressed concerns that refusing to pay the bribe would lead to further delays and harassment, in the guise of re-surveying the land.
A representative of Whitefield Rising said they had been following up with BBMP officials on the issue for almost a year, only be stonewalled. “One of our volunteers had been trying to get flat owners khatas through Khata Mela. But he was harassed as an anonymous complaint was made to the Whitefield police alleging that he was trying to dupe the residents. We had a meeting with the DCP (Whitefield) to clear the air. The volunteer was accused of corruption for refusing to pay a bribe,” he said.
A senior revenue official from Mahadevapura zone admitted in most cases, bifurcation and issuing khatas for flats were being held up only because of corruption.
BBMP Commissioner N. Manjunath Prasad said if residents came forward with specific instances of bribery, he will take action against errant officials. He promised that all 3,000-plus flat owners in these 19 apartments would be issued their rightful khatas through melas. “I will direct local officials to go to their doorstep, collect relevant documents and issue khatas in the next three weeks,” he said.
‘Not restricted to Mahadevapura zone alone’
The problem of delay in bifurcation and issuing of khatas to individual flats does not appear to be restricted to BBMP’s Mahadevapura zone alone. C.S.V. Prasad, president, Federation of Apartments Association – Bengaluru, said this was just one area infested with rampant corruption across the city. “In most cases, flat owners pay the bribe and get the khata, unlike in the case of Mahadevapura. Flat owners must provide all relevant documents and insist they get the khata without paying a bribe, and we will support them,” Mr. Prasad said.
