The Assam Urban Immovable Property Tax Act, 1963

ASSAM ACT NO .XIX OF 1963 '£ tl'E ASSAM URB AN IMM OVABLE PROP ER TY TA X AC T, 1963, (R ec ei ve d t h e a ssen t o f th e P re si den t on th e 3rd A ugu st 1963) (As passed by the Assembly) [Pub lished in the Assam Gazette E xtr aordina ry, dated the 7th August 1963] An Act to impose a tax on imm ovab le prop erty in urban areas in the Sta te o f Assam . Preamble, Whereas it is expe dien t to impose a tax on imm ovab le pro per ty in ur ba n areas in the Sta te of Assam : It is hereby enacted in the Fourt eenth Y ear of the Repub lic of India as follows :■— Sho rt title , 1. (i) This Act may be cal led the Assam Ur ban extent a nd i m m o v a kie Property Ta x Act, 1963. commence* r / ? ment. (2) I t ex tends 1 to all urban areas i n Assam. (3) It shall come into force on such da te as the State Governmen t may, by notification in the Offic ial Gazett e, app oin t. Definitions. 2. In this Act, unless ther e is any thin g rep ugnant in the subject o r con text — (1) “ ann ual value ” means— (a) in the Mun icipal areas the ann ual value of Assam lands and buildings as dete rmined in Act XV of acco rdan ce wi th the provisions of the 1957- Assam Municipa l Act, 1956 ; or (Z>) annual value as determ ined in the!'final Valuation List refe rred to in sub-section (5) of section 6 ; (2) “ assessee” m eans a person by whom Ur ba n Immovab le Pro perty Tax or any other sum of money is payab le under this Act and includes every other person in respec t of whom any proceed ing under this Act has been tak en for the determinat ion o f the Ur ba n Immo vab le Pro per ty Ta x pay able by him ; (3) “B oard” means the Assam Board of Revenue . ^ssant constitu ted under the Assam Board of Revenue Act, igg2,X ' ' 1962 or under any sta tutory modification or re- enact ­ ment thereof ; Price 0 -25nP, V- 2 Lev y of Urb an Im ­ movab le Property Tax, Exemptions . (4) “ Commissioner” means the Commissioner app oin ted u nder section 5 ; (5) “ Governme nt” means the State Governm ent ; (6) “ Municipal ar ea ” means any area decla red to be or included in the Mu nic ipa lity under t he provi­ sion of sub-sect ion (2) of section 5 of the Assam Assam Mu nic ipa l Act, 1956, o r declared to be a notified area Act XV of under the provis ion of ^sub-section (4) of section 334 of the said Act ; (7) “ occu pier” means the person for the time being in actual occ upa tion of, or pay ing , or liab le to pay to the owner, ren t or any por tion o f rent o f the land or building in respec t of which the word is used, and includes a person occupying a land or building or pa rt of a land or building rent free, and an owner living in his own house ; (8) “own er” includes any person for the time bein g receiv ing rent of any lan d or bui lding or any pa rt of any land or build ing whe ther on his own accoun t or as a gen t or trus tee for any person o r society or for any religious or chari tab le purpose, or as a receiver, or who would so receive such ren t if the land , building o r pa rt the reo f are let to a ten an t ; (9) “ prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act ; (10) “ State ” means the Sta te of Assam ; (11) “urban are a” includes a Municipal are a and any a rea dec lared to be such by the Governm ent by noti ficat ion in the Official Gazet te, wi thin 16 kilo.me< tres of any Municipal are a ; (12) “urban land and build ing ” means any lan d and bui ldin g with in any urban are a ; (13) “y ear” means the financia l year; 3. Subject to the oth er provisions con tained in this Act , the re shall be levied and collected for every year a t ax here inaf ter called the “Ur ba n Imm ovable Property Ta x” , on all land s and buildings in urb an areas. Th e quan tum of tax shall be three per cent of the ann ual value of the land and bui lding and sha' l be recoverable from the owner thereof. 4. The Ur ba n Imm ova ble Property Ta x shall not be leviable in respect of u rban lands a nd build ings :— (a) occupied by the Sta te or the Central Go ve rnmen t; 3 Taxing author ity. Valuation List. (b) owned by— (i) a Municipal Board or Tow n Com mitt ee ; (ii) a Panch aya t or Mahkuma Par isha d cons­ titute d under any law for the t ime being in force : (c) set ap ar t for public worship and actu ally * so used ; (d) used exclusively as a publ ic bur ial or bu rn­ ing grou nd ; (e) used for charit able purposes as the Govern­ ment may by notification specify ; (f) used for the pre servation of anc ien t mon u­ ments. 5. (1) The Governm ent may., for c arry ing out the purpose of this Act, app oin t a Commissioner and such othe r persons to assist h im as it m ay think fit. (2) Persons app oin ted u nde r sub-sect ion (1) shall exercise such powers as may be conferred and perform such duties as m ay be required by or under this Act. (3) All persons app ointed under sub-section (1) ?c tX LV shall be deem ed to be pub lic servants with in the mean- 18 6°- ing of section 21 of the India n Penal Code , 1860. 6. (1) In ord er to levy the Urban Imm ovable Property Tax, the prescribed authority may obtain in the beg inning of each year from the Municipal Board or Tow n Com mitt ee, as the case may be, a list of owners of lands and build ings with the ir addresses in respect of wh ich ann ual valu e has been det erm ined by the Municipa l Board or Town Committee. (2) Where no annual value of any land or bui ld­ ing has been dete rmined by the Municipa l Board or Town Committee, the prescribed autho rity , afte r mak ­ ing such enqu iries as may be necessary, shall dete rmine the valu ation of such land or bui ldin g within such Mu nic ipa l are a as h ereinaft er prov ided and shall enter the sam e in a list called the dra ft Valua tion List, which shall be in the prescribed form. (3) As soon as m ay be, afte r pre parat ion of the dra ft Va lua tion Lis t, the prescribed autho rity shall pub lish a not ice in the p rescribed ma nner call ing for any objection to the said Valua tion List, to be pre ­ ferred wi thin thi rty days of the date of pub lica tion of the said notice. (4) Where any objec tion is preferred under sub­ section (3), the p rescr ibed author ity shall, afte r afford­ ing a reasonable opp ortunity of being hea rd to the objec tor, decide the objec tion and shall confirm or modify the dra ft Valua tion List . 4 (5) Subject to such modification as provided in 'th is Act, the d raf t Valuation List shall be final Valua ­ tion List afte r t hir ty days of issue o f the notice under sub-section (3). Returns . The prescribed author ity, in orde r to pre pare the V aluatio n List und er section 6 may, whenever it thinks fit. by notice requ ire any owner or occupier of urb an land or building to furn ish it, within fifteen days, with return of th e ren t or annual. value the reo f and such oth er info rma tion as it may re qu ir e; and the prescribed au tho rity, at any time between sunrise and sunset, may ente r, inspect and measure any such land or bu ild ing: Provided that the prescribed au thor ity m ay, in respec t o f any partic ula r owner or occupie r and for reasons to be reco rded in writ ing, extend the date of furn ishing r eturns. Principles of 8. (1) In determ inin g the annual value of urb an determ ining land s a nd buildings under section 6, the pres cribed vaJue*11113' authority shall follow such procedu re as may be prescribed and shall have rega rd to the following matter s, namely :— (a) the locali ty in which the urban land and building is situated ; (Z») the predominan t use to which the urb an land and building is pu t, that is to say, industr ial, commerc ial or residential ; (c) accessibili ty or prox imity to market, dispen­ sary, hosp ital, railway sta tion , edu cat ional inst itut ion or Governmen t offices ; (d) ava ilability of civic amenities like wa ter sup­ ply, drai nag e and ligh ting ; and (g) such other m atte rs as may be prescribed. , (2) The prescribed a uth or ity shall follow the same procedu re, as far as m ay be practic able, as is followed by a Mu nic ipa l Board or Tow n Com mit tee in de ter ­ min ing the annual value of u rban lands and build­ ings. Pen aitv for 9- Whoever refuses o r fails to furnish any ret urn non -submis-.under section 7, or knowingly furnish a false or incor - sion of rect ret urn or info rma tion , shall be liab le to a fine not ^ ‘u™h ?r f°r exceeding twen ty rupees and to a fur the r fine not false inlor- exceed ing five rupees for each day d uring which he mation. omits to furnish a true and corr ect return ; and whoever obstructs, hinders or prev ents I the prescr ibed au tho rity from ente ring or inspec ting or measuring i any such l and or bui lding shall be liab le to a fine no t exceeding two hundred rupees. Agsessraenf. 10. Th e prescribed autho rity in the beg inning of each yea r on obtain ing the necessary information from the Municipal Board or Tow n Com mit tee or on complet ion of the final Valua tion List, shal l assess the am ount of tax due from the owner. In the event of failure of the owner to comply with the terms of notice under section 7, the assessment shal l be done by the prescribed autho rity to the best of its ju dg ­ ment . Power of Government to 1 educe or remit Urban Immovable Property Tax. 11. (1) G overnment may, subjec t t o such rules as may be mad e in this behal f, by o rder reduce or rem it, whe ther prospectively or retrospectively the Ur ba n Immovab le Property Ta x payable in respect of any class of urban lands and build ings or by any class of persons and in partic ula r the tax payable in respect of u rban lands and buildings which are occup ied wholly or partly by the owners themselves. (2) The Government may at any tim e cancel or modify any orde r issued und er sub-section (1) and upon such cancellation the Ur ban Imm ovable Pro ­ perty Tax shall be payable in respect of the land and building concerned with effect from the y ear in which such cancellat ion is m ade . Real isation 12. Where the u rba n land and bui lding belong to of tax in a firm or an association of persons, other tha n a solTt'rai'of company as defined in the Companies Act, 1956 and any firm°or *n r e s P e c t °f which tax is due under this Act is discon- associati&n. tinued or the association of persons is dissolved the Urb an Imm ovable Property Tax shall be levied upon and recovered jo int ly and severally, from every person who at the time of such discontinuance or dissolution was a pa rtn er of such firm or mem ber of such association ; and all the provision of this Act shall app ly according ly. Appeal to 13. (1) Any owner objecting to an orde r passed the presc rib- under this Act may, within thi rty days from the date ed authority* o f t }i e finalisation of the Valua tion List under sub­ section (5) of sect ion 6, or service of any oth er orde r, appea l to the prescribed authority again st such order provided that this perio d may be extended by the prescribed au tho rity for good and sufficient reasons to be recorded in writ in g: Act I of 1956. Prov ided also th at no app eal shall be entertained by such autho rity unless it is satisfied th at the amoun t of t ax assessed or penalty imposed has been paid : Provided furth er that such authority , if satisfied th at an owner is un able to pay th e tax assessed, may, for reasons to be reco rded in writing, enter tain an appeal without such tax having been paid . 6 (2) In disposing of an appeal under sub-section (1) the appell ate autho rity ma y— (a) confirm, reduce, enhance or annu l the o rder of valua tion or assessment, or (Z>) set aside the order of valuat ion or assess­ ment and direct a fresh valuat ion or assessment a fter such enquiry as may be orde red, or (c) confirm, reduce or ann ul the ord er of penalty . (3) Th e order of the app ella te autho rity shall be final except as prov ided in section 14 and section 15. Revision by 14. (1) Th e Commissioner may call for a nd Gommis- examine the reco rd of any proceeding unde r this Act, noner. and if he considers th at any ord er passed therein by any person app oin ted under section 5 to assist him is erroneous in so far as i t is pre judicial to the interests of revenue, he may, after giving the owner an opportu nity ol bein g heard and afte r mak ing or caus ing to be ma de such enquiry as he deems neces­ sary, pass such orders ther eon as the circumstances of the case justify, incl udin g an order enhancing or modify ing the valuatio n or assessment, or cancel ling the valuat ion or assessment and direct ing a fresh valua tion or assessment as the case m ay be. (2) In the case o f any order othe r than an order to which sub-sec tion (1) applies passed by any person app ointed under section 5 to assist him , the Commis­ sioner may , eith er of his own motion or on a peti tion by the owner for revis ion, call for the record of any proce eding under this Act in which any such order c, has been passed and may make such enquiry or cause y ' such enquiry to be made, and subject to the provi­ sions of this, may pass such orde r the reon, not being an ord er pre jud icia l to the owner, as he thinks fit. * (3 ) In the case of a pet itio n for revision under sub-section (2) by an owner, the pet itio n shal l be made with in nin ety days from the date on which the ord er in ques tion was com municated to him or the da te on which he otherwise came to know of it, whichever is e ar li er : Provided th at the Commissioner before whom the pe titi on is filed may ad mit it afte r the expirat ion of the p eriod of nine ty days if he is satisfied th at for reasons beyond the cont rol of the pet itioner or for any o the r sufficient cause, it could not be filed wi thin time. 4 1 (4) Th e Commissioner shall no t revise under this section in the following any order cases : («) <■ (*) fa where an appeal aga inst the ord er lies under section 13 or 15 bu t has not been mad e an d the time within which such app eal may be made has not exp ired , or in the case of an appeal to the Board, the owner has not waived his right of app eal ; or where the o rder is pending on appeal under section 13 ; or where the o rde r has been made the subjec t of a n appeal to the Board. 1 i J Ex planation .—An orde r by the Commiss ioner decl ining to inter fere shal l, for the purposes of this section, be deemed not to be an ord er prejudicial io an owner. ^he^Board 0 ) Any owner objec ting to an ord er passed of Rev enue . in appea l und er section 13 or passed in revision under sub-sec tion (1) of section 14 m ay appeal to the Board with in sixty days o f the da te on which such order is communica ted to him. (2) The Board may admi t an appeal after the exp irati on of the sixty days referr ed to in sub-section (1) i f it is satisfied that for reasons beyond the control of the app ellant or for any other sufficient cause it could not be filed with in time. (3) An appeal to the Board shall be in the pres­ cribed form and shall be verified in the prescribed manner, and shall be accompanied by a fee of twenty- five rupees. Not ice of (41 The Board may, after giving the owner an De ma nd opportuni ty of being heard , pass such orders thereon as it thinks fit, and shall communicate any such orders to the owner and to the Commissioner. 16. When a ny tax or penal ty or other trues is or are payable in consequence of any order passed under or in pursuance of this Act, the prescribed autho rity shall serve upon the person liable to pay such tax cr penalty or other dues a notice o f demand in the pres­ cribed form specifying the sum so payable and the date within which such sum shall be paid. Mode of rc- 17 . (1) If the demand in respect of any dues under co very. this Act is not paid on o r before the date specified as aforesaid, the owner shall be deemed to be in defau lt; 8 Provided tha t the prescribed authority may, in respec t o f any particular owner and for reasons to be recorded in writing, extend the date cf paym ent of the dues or allows such owner t o pay the same by instal­ men ts and: in th at case the owner shall not be deemed to be in default til l the da te as extended or the last date of payment by in stalm ent is over. (2) Where an owner is in defaul t, the prescribed autho rity may in his discretion, direc t that , in addition to the amount due, a sum not exceeding that amount shall be recovered from the defaulte r by way of penal ty. (3) Where an owner is in default, the prescribed autho rity may order tha t the amount due shall be recoverable as an arrear of land revenue and may proceed to realise the amount due as such. Ta x of 18. Where an owner of urban land or building; deceased cjjeS ; t ji e t a x s}i a ] ] be levied upon and recoverable from rep resenta - his; executor, adm inis trator or other legal representative, tiv e. as th e case may be. Ta x whe n 19. When the urb an land or building of an owner, pa ya ble by p a s s e s o n t 0 a n y pe r s o n whether by sale, inher itance or otherwise, the liabil ity to pay tax payable in respec t of such land or building and remain ing unpaid at the time of such passing on, shall be jointly and severally on the transferor and the transferee, and the transferee shall within thirty days of such passing on, apply to the prescr ibed author ity to record his name. Lia bil ity of 20. Where the urb an land or bui lding is in-charge gu ardian & o f a n y g u a r dian , trus tee or agent of a minor or othe r ’ ' inc apaci ated person on behalf of, and for the benefit of, such minor or other inc apaci ated person, the urb an Imm ovable Property Tax shall be levied upon and recoverab le from such guard ian , tru stee or agen t as the case may be, in the like m anner and the same exte nt as i t would be leviable upon an d recoverable from any such min or or other incapa cia ted person, if he were of full age and sound min d an d all the provisions of this Act shall apply acco rding ly. Re fun d. 21. The pres cribed autho rity on being satisfied either on an app lica tion or on any o the r manner that the owner has paid in excess of the sum due from dm shall order, as soon as it may be, the refu nd ot the sum so pa id in excess : Provided that the prescribed au tho rity may set­ off such sum against other dues from the same owner. 9 B ĉtifica- 22. (1) Th e autho rity which made a valuat ion non. Q r assessment or passed an ord er on appea l or revi­ sion in respect thereof may, at any time with in three year s from the date of such valu ation, assessment or ord er and of its own motion , rectify ai y mistake ap pa ren t from the record of the case, and shall, wi thin the like period, rectify any such mis take as has been bro ught to its notice by an owner : Provided tha t no such recti fica tion shall be mad e having the effect of enhanc ing the assessment unless the autho rity concerned has given notice to the owner of its inte ntion so to do and has allowed him a reasonable opp ortunity of being, heard . (2) Where any such rectif ication has the effect o f reducing the assessment, a refund shall be due to the owner, (3) Where any such recti ficat ion has the effect of enhancing the assessment, a notice of demand shall be issued for t he sum payable. False Sta- 23. Who ever makes a sta tem ent in verifica tion tem ent in o r dec lara tion in connection with any proceedings e c a r a t l o n ‘under this Act which is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false, or does not believe to be true, shall, on conv iction before a Magis trat e, be pun ishable with simple impri son me nt which may extend to six month s o r with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or wi th both. Power to 24. The prescribed autho rity may, for the pur - call for in- poses o f this Act— forni 'tfon . 1 I-'- 3$ '' >«•' (1) requ ire any firm or associat ion or Hindu undivided or jo in t family to furn ish it with a sta tem en t of the names and addresses of the members of the firm or associat ion or o f the names and addresses of the ma nager or mem bers of the family , as the case may be ; (2) requir e any person whom it has reason to believe to be a trustee, gua rdian, manager or agent to furn ish it wi th a stat ement of the names of the persons with their addresses for or of whom he is a trus tee, guard ian , manag er or agen t ; (3) requ ire any Municipal Board o r 1 own Com­ mit tee to furni sh t he names a nd addresses of owners of urba n land and building situated within its area and copies of valu ation list and assessment registers 10 Bar of 25 . No suit shall be bro ught in any Civil Court SCouri n t o s e t a s *de or modify the tax levied or orders passed under the provisions of this Act, and no prosecution suit or other proce edings shall lie aga ins t any officer of the Sta te Governm ent for any thin g in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act or the rules made thereu nder. Liab ili ty of 26. Th e prescribed au tho rity shall, for the pur - A,rt 19 08 V gu ardi an & poses of this Act, have the same powers as are vested 0 tru ste e, etc. ;n a Court under the Civil Procedure Code, 1908, when trying a suit in respect of the following ma tte rs— (1) enforcing the attend ance of any person and exam ining him on oath or affirmation ; (2) compelling the produc tion of documents ; (3) issuing commissions for the exam inat ion or witnesses ; and any such proceedings before the prescribed au tho ­ rity shall be deem ed to be a “judicial proc eed ing” within the mea ning of sections 193 and 228 an d for j^ qV the purposes of section 196 o f the India n Penal Code, 1860. Com pu tatio n 2 7- com puting the period of lim itat ion pres- of the cribed for a n appeal or revision, the day on which the . perio d of orde r compla ined of was served and the time requis ite lim itat io n. fo r obtain ing a certified copy of such order , shall be excluded. Inf orm ation to be furni­ she d reg ar­ di ng chan ge of ow ner ­ ship. 28. If any^owner— (a) sells or otherwise disposes o f his urban land or build ing or any part thereo f, or (b) acquires or occupies any new land or buil­ ding in an urb an area, or (c) constructs any new build ing or house in an urb an area , he shall w ithin the prescribed time inform the prescribed authority accordingly ; and if any such owner dies, his l egal representa tive shall in like manner inform the said authority. Deleg ation o f 2 9 .1 he Government may delegate, by notification the powers in the Official Gazet te, any of the powers of the of Comm is- Commissioner, under this Act to any person appo inted sioner . under section 5 to assist the Commissioner. 11 Offences an d Penalties. 30. (1) Whoever— (a) fails to pay the tax due from him within the prescribed period ; cr (b) fraudulently or wilfully evades the payment of any tax due under this Act ; or (c) obstructs any prescribed au thor ity from entry unde r section 7 ; or (d) fails or neglects to comply with any requ ire­ men t made by h im under the provisions of this A c t; or (e) knowingly produces incorrect accounts registers or documents or knowingly furnishes incorrect information ; or (f) contravenes any other provision of this Act cr the Rules made the reu nder ; shall be liable, on conviction , to a fine which may extend to one thousand rupees and when the offence is a continuing one, with a daily fine not exceeding fifty rupees dur ing the period of the continuance of the offence. (2) No Court shall take cognizance of any offence under this Act or the Rules framed thereunder, except on a coni plaint in writing by the prescr ibed authority , and no Cou rt inferior to that of a Magistrate of the First Class shall t ry any such offence. (3) Notw ithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure , 1898, all offences punishable unde r this Act shall be cognizable and bailable. Power to 31. (1) Th e prescribed authority m ay, at any t'me , compound accept from any person who has committed an offence offences, under section 30 by way of composition of offence, a sum of money not exceeding one thousand rupees cr double the amo unt of tax involved, whichever is greater , in add ition to the tax to be recovered. Act V of 1898. (2) On payment of such sum of money as may be determined under sub-section (1), the prescribed autho ­ rity shall, where necessary, repo rt to the cour t that the offence has been compounded and therea fter no furth er proceedings under section 30 shall be taken again st the offender in respect of the same offence and the said Co urt shal l discharge or acq uit the accused, as the case may be. 12 Power to 32. (1) Th e Sta te Governm ent may , make rules □lake rules. consistent with the provisions of this Act, for securing the pay ment of tax and gene rally for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of th is Act. (2) In partic ula r and witnout prejudice to the gene rality of th e foregoing power, the Sta te Govern­ ment may make rules :— (a) prescribing the manner in which and the intervals at which tax and pen alty shall be paid unde r this Act ; (b~) prescribing the authority or auth ori ties for the purpose of ca rrying out any function under any of the provisions of this Act ; (c) presc ribing the form in which the Va lua ­ tion List shal l be pre pared ; (</) prescribing the manner in which and con­ ditions under which the Governme nt may reduce or rem it the Urban Imm ovable Property Tax ; (e) prescrib ing the ma nner in which an appeal pet ition may be filed under sections 13 and 15 ; ( y ) prescribing the ma nner in which a revision peti tion may be filed under section 14 ; (#) prescribing the ma nner in which refund under section 21 shall be mad e ; a nd (A) providing for any other mat ter for which the rules can be or may be prescribed. (3) All ru les under this section shall be laid for not less than four teen days before the Assam Legisla tive Assembly as soon as possible after they are made and shall be su oject to such modif ication as the Legisla tive Assemblv may mak e during the Session in which they are so laid or the Session immediately following. AGP (Leg) 24/64—1,022—21-1-64