By Ishita Malakar
The Karnataka Transport Department seized over 30 luxury cars over the failure in payment of due taxes which amounts to worth Rs. 3 crores and is mandatory for all citizens.
This operation of crackdown was held under one day which included mostly luxury cars, with brand owners like Porsche, Mercedes, Audi, BMW, Range Rover, Ferrari, Aston Martin and many more. This entire activity was held under the guidance of Deputy Commissioner C Mallikarjun, along with 41 other officials which also includes the Regional Transport officers like B Srinivas Prasad, Deepak Srinivasappa and Ranjit among the more important ones. This event helped recover at least 3 crore rupees of unpaid taxes.
The Deputy Commissioner of Karnataka has mentioned while talking about the incident that they have found luxury car owners evading taxes since quite a while now, hence on Sunday (February 2, 2025) they carried out this operation. Some of these cars were registered outside Karnataka, while some of them had paid their taxes just partially and some of them have completely avoided paying the taxes. He also spoke about the fact that the department is wholly committed to ensure compliance, and these car owners have already sent recovery notices to recover these seized cars.
A senior transport official also pointed out that luxury car owners’ tax avoidance has become a bigger problem in Karnataka. It is discovered that car owners are abusing the system’s flaws. To avoid Karnataka’s higher road tax, many owners register their expensive vehicles in other states, but they nevertheless drive them here. In addition to causing economic loss, this is unlawful, the official stated.
The southern Indian state of Karnataka has one of the highest road taxes in the country, according to a report published by India Today. The tax is calculated by the Karnataka state government using a system that takes into account the vehicle’s age, price, fuel type, weight, seating capacity, intended use, and engine cubic capacity. It also considers whether the car was purchased in another Indian state or is a used car.
Therefore, depending on the car’s age and cost, the tax on a four-wheeler can range from 13 to 93%. However, it is noteworthy that electric vehicles receive significant subsidies; for example, a four-wheeler EV is subject to 4% tax.
The department henceforth will continue with their efforts to combat tax fraud, particularly among owners of luxury vehicles.