Property tax fraud unearthed in Udupi; two arrested

Udupi: A case of alleged property tax fraud has come to light in the Udupi City Municipal Council, with two persons arrested in connection with the scam. The case was registered at the Udupi Town Police Station based on a complaint filed by Municipal Commissioner Mahantesh.

According to the complaint, the municipal council collects property tax through an e-receipt system that generates a challan, after which the amount is to be deposited into the council’s account at Union Bank of India.

During a reconciliation of tax payments on February 3, officials found that a challan bearing the bank’s seal indicated payment on January 28. However, the corresponding transaction was not reflected in the bank’s official statement for that date.

Further scrutiny on February 4 revealed additional irregularities. Some challans carrying the Union Bank seal were found to have the same challan number as those generated on January 28, but bore different dates. The existence of two challans with identical numbers but different dates raised serious suspicion of tampering and misuse.

Officials suspect that the accused misused the bank’s seal and siphoned off property tax payments without depositing the funds into the municipal account. Based on the complaint, police registered a case under Crime No. 207/2025 invoking Sections 331(3), 331(4) and 305 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

A special investigation team was constituted to probe the matter. During the investigation, the police arrested two accused — Supesh (25) and Shantha (43) — near Rajangana close to Krishna Matha in Udupi. The police have seized the bank seal allegedly used in the fraud along with related documents.

Udupi Superintendent of Police Hariram Shankar said that the accused were taken into custody following credible leads gathered during the probe.

The investigation was carried out under his direction, with guidance from Additional SP Sudhakar Nayak and DySP Belliyappa. The operation was led by Town Police Station Inspector Mahesh Prasad P., with support from station staff.

Further investigation is underway to ascertain the extent of the fraud and whether more individuals were involved.

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