Amedia Stamp Duty Penalty Pune: Company Ordered to Pay Stamp Duty with Heavy Penalty

Pune: In the Mundhwa government land scam case, the stamp duty concession claimed by Amedia Company has been declared illegal. The company has now been ordered to pay the remaining ₹20,99,99,500 along with penalty, as directed by Santosh Hingane, District Stamp Collector of the Registration Department, on Thursday.

Under the Maharashtra Stamp Act, Section 39, Amedia will also have to pay an additional ₹1.47 crore as penalty at the rate of 1% per month on the outstanding amount. The order further states that if Amedia delays the payment, the penalty amount will continue to increase by 1% per month.

Why the concession was declared illegal

Amedia had obtained an “intent letter” from the Industries Department for stamp duty concession. However, they failed to submit the mandatory No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the District Industries Centre (DIC). Due to this missing requirement, the concession has been deemed illegal.

Background of the land transaction

Amedia is setting up a data centre on the 40-acre Botanical Garden land in Mundhwa. While registering the purchase deed, the company availed a 5% stamp duty concession under the 1 February 2024 GR and got the registration done for only ₹500.

In reality, apart from stamp duty, they were also required to pay 2% cess (Metro tax & Municipal tax) amounting to ₹6 crore, which they also failed to pay.

Notices and penalty

Upon discovering the stamp duty evasion, the Deputy Registrar issued notices to Amedia, even granting two extensions to pay the outstanding dues. Since the company failed to comply, the district stamp authority issued the present order.

Amedia can file an appeal

Amedia has the option to file an appeal before the Inspector General of Registration (IGR) within 60 days against the penalty order.