Paying for parking in Gurugram malls? You may be getting fleeced

The Gurugram Municipal Corporation has sent a notice to as many as 127 malls in the city, warning that these malls would be sealed if found to be flouting parking policy. In recent times, there have been numerous complaints about malls in Gurugram charging expensive rates to patrons for them to park their vehicles in the basement of the buildings. The issue is that most mall owners had taken property tax rebates by reflecting that the basement of their malls were not being used for commercial purposes.

Hindustan Times reported on Friday that the MCG has formed 16 teams to visit the 127 malls in the city and inspect if parking charges are being enforced despite mall owners opting for property tax rebate. Charging parking fees means that the basement floor or floors are being used for commercial purpose, a violation of the March 2017 parking policy which covers around 120 malls at present.

Officials, according to the report, have said that the teams formed by MCG will ensure that mall owners are not doubly benefiting from charging for parking while also taking advantage of the tax rebate. The report(s) from the 16 teams will be submitted this week, confirmed MCG commissioner PC Meena. He has further promised strict action against any mall owner who is found to have violated the parking policy. “I have asked the teams to check the parking status in malls and ensure that there is free parking space. The teams from the taxation wing will be visiting these commercial buildings that have basement parking facilities on MG Road, Golf Course Road (GCR), Sohna Road and other new sectors," he was quoted as saying. “We have asked owners to provide a declaration, listing details such as the total area of parking space available, whether they are charging parking fees and the annual property tax they pay to the civic body."

Based on the size of a parking space, the property tax on each basement floor can be between ₹10 lakh to ₹20 lakh annually. Mall owners can either pay this amount and then charge for parking from patrons or seek an exemption while offering free parking to all.

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