Political Influence Suspected as Pune Civic Body Clears Nilesh Rane’s 3.77 Crore Tax Dues
Pune, 29th February 2024: Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has granted relief to BJP leader Nilesh Rane in the hotel tax arrears case, following his payment of a 25 lakh rupees cheque. This payment has resulted in the clearance of his arrears. However, claims are emerging that the reduction of his dues to zero may be attributed to political influence.
Nilesh Rane, who owns a business establishment in the Deccan area, was initially facing outstanding dues of Rs 3 crore 77 lakh as declared by the PMC. Subsequently, law enforcement sealed his property in response to the arrears. The Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena staged a protest outside Rane’s hotel, urging the recovery of dues from him.
Despite an outstanding balance of 3 crore 77 lakh rupees, Nilesh Rane has issued a check of 25 lakhs to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). This has sparked various discussions, with the PMC stating that the current reduction of property tax to zero is due to an ongoing dispute over the remaining property.
The issue arose on Tuesday when the PMC sealed Rane’s hotel in the Deccan area for failing to pay property tax on the business premises. Specifically, Nilesh Rane owns a mall at Deccan Corner in the Shivajinagar area, which had accumulated arrears totalling Rs 5 crore 60 lakh. The concerned party paid Rs 1 crore 40 lakh for one floor, leaving an outstanding amount of 3.77 crores for the upper two floors.
Despite repeated efforts by the administration to collect the arrears, the concerned party did not comply, leading to the PMC’s decision to seal the property on Tuesday. The current reduction of property tax to zero is linked to the ongoing dispute over the remaining property.
