The Maharashtra government’s Stamps and Registrations department has imposed a Rs 473 crore penalty on the Lodha Group, a major real estate firm run by the family of senior BJP legislator Mangal Prabhat Lodha. The department accused the firm of deliberately avoiding stamp duty in a Rs 5,700 crore land deal in Wadala, central Mumbai. In response, Abhishek Lodha, the company’s managing director and the MLA’s son, announced that the firm would challenge the order before an appropriate authority.
On April 30, the state’s Collector of Stamps, who holds quasi-judicial authority in such matters, issued an order finding the firm guilty of evasion. The Lodha Group has been instructed to pay the Rs 473 crore penalty and dues within 30 days to avoid further action. The Indian Express has reviewed the order issued by the Collector of Stamps.
Source: The Indian Express
