The Greater Chennai Corporation, in its attempt to nab tax defaulters, has slapped a notice on actor-couple Ramki and Nirosha for defaulting on property tax for the last 13 years.
According to TOI, the couple had defaulted on the payment of property tax for their office building, located in Anna Salai.
According to the report, Ramki owes Rs 1.17 lakh to the corporation in unpaid property tax. Revenue department officials attached to Teynampet (Zone 9) went to the site and stuck notices at the entrance to the office building.
According to the report, senior officers in the corporation believe that Rs 220 crore in unpaid tax is due to the civic body, which is taking active measures to identify and nab the defaulters.
"There are several big name defaulters in the city. Even Ramki's case was a shock. How could someone not pay tax for 13 years? It is embarrassing for the person," a senior official told TOI.
If the notice fails to bring any change, the civic body plans to take legal action against defaulters under the provisions of the Chennai City Municipal Corporation Act, 1913.
Ramki is a well known figure in the Tamil film industry and rose to popularity during the 80s and 90s. His wife, Nirosha, who co-owns the Anna Salai office building too started out in films and now works as a TV actor.
With only a month to go for the current fiscal to end, the corporation officials hope to collect at least Rs 150 crore from unpaid taxes. As on February 21, the civic body has collected Rs 586 crore in property tax, according to the report.
The officials also claim that there is a Rs 9 crore increase in the amount collected during this period as compared to last year, the report stated.