Mumbai: The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL) has issued a notice to two contractors of Metro Line 3 (Aqua Line), stating that their payments will be withheld due to their failure to pay Rs 152.05 crore in property tax to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
The BMC had billed HCC-MMS JV Rs 53.17 crore and CEC-ITD JV Rs 98.88 crore for using a civic-owned plot at the Wadala Truck Terminal as a casting yard for the Metro Line 3 project (Colaba-Bandra-Seepz), according to a Hindustan Times report. Additional municipal commissioner (city) Ashwini Joshi ruled on March 27, 2024, that the contractors were liable for the tax.
The contractors challenged this in the Bombay High Court and obtained a stay in April 2024, which has since been extended. On October 25, 2024, the court ordered that the ad-interim relief would continue until the next hearing, which is still pending.
MMRCL Sends Notice To Contractor After BMC's Move
Despite the ongoing legal proceedings, the BMC issued a notice to MMRCL on January 31, 2025, asking it to recover the unpaid taxes from the contractors. In response, MMRCL sent a notice to HCC-MMS JV on March 13, stating that it had decided to withhold payments until the outstanding property tax was cleared. MMRCL justified the move as necessary to protect its financial and legal interests and urged the contractors to settle their dues immediately.
However, Advocate Prerak Choudhary, representing the contractors, argued that the BMC’s property tax demand violates Section 184 of the Railways Act, 1989, which exempts railway-related land from such taxation. He also pointed out that the high court’s interim relief protects the contractors from coercive recovery.
According to the report, Choudhary also criticised BMC and MMRCL’s attempts to recover the dues through withheld payments, calling the action unjustified and in violation of court orders. He stressed that all parties should wait for the court’s final ruling.
