MADURAI: The Ramanathapuram municipality has successfully collected
its long pending tax dues from about 20 people by resorting to a novel
method – keeping overflowing garbage dumps
in front of the houses or shops of those evading tax dues. What has
apparently helped the municipality have its way is the absence of an
elected council whose members usually intervene for the tax evaders, mostly affluent people.

The authorities of this first-grade municipality
with a population of 61, 440 spread over 6.33 sqkm across 33 wards had
managed to collect ‘1.40 crore out of the ‘1.50 crore tax dues pending
for the past five years. The town has a literacy rate of 93.07%.
Municipality sources said that the outstanding dues worked out to about
‘1.5 crores mainly by way of property tax pending for about five years
and other taxes for seven years.

Those who paid their taxes on time were mostly the economically weaker
sections and they very rarely received notices. On the other hand, some
affluent people who had some political clout had been evading tax
payment for the past five years.

“We kept on issuing notices, but they were ignored. If we sent them
notices warning of penal action, we would get phone calls from the
chairman or the councillors asking us to refrain from further action,”
the sources said. Shantha (named changed) of Keeraikara Street
in the municipality said that she had at first felt angry when the
overflowing bin suddenly appeared in their street, but when workers told
her that it was to collect long-pending dues she had agreed to put up
with it.

Municipality commissioner A Abdul Rashid
assumed office in September 2016 and was presented with a long files of
pending dues. With the period of the council coming to an end the very
next month, it was left to the commissioner, who also became the
municipality’s special officer, to collect the dues. Notices were issued
and when there was no sign of the pending dues filling the coffers, the
municipality resorted to placing garbage bins which were not emptied
regularly.