DMK chairperson of Alangulam Town Panchayat M. Sudha, who was disqualified from the post recently, was found to have not paid the property tax for seven holdings she owns within Alangulam town panchayat jurisdiction before the deadline.
After DMK chairperson of Alangulam Town Panchayat M. Sudha, who was elected to the council from ward 7 of the urban civic body, failed to pay before the stipulated deadline the taxes payable to the local body for eight properties she owns within the Alangulam Town Panchayat jurisdiction for the year, the town panchyat administration had sent notices to her on December 7, 2022 and again on March 3, 2023 asking her to clear the dues.
The third notice was sent to Ms. Sudha on April 10, 2023, but the latest notice was also reportedly not honoured.
The property tax for the first half of 2022 – 2023 should have been paid on or before September 30, 2022 and the tax for the second half of 2022 – 2023 by March 31, 2023. However, taxes for seven properties were not paid before the stipulated deadline while property tax for one property was paid properly.
When Councillor S. N. Subhash Chandrabose of ward 9 came to know about the non-payment of property tax by Ms. Sudha before the deadline, he filed a complaint with Tamil Nadu Local Bodies Ombudsman on July 10, 2023 seeking her disqualification. Following inquiry, the Ombudsman sent its findings to Director of Town Panchayats for appropriate action as the property owner did not pay the tax before the deadline.
As there was no further action on his complaint, Mr. Subhash Chandra Bose filed a petition in the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court which directed on October 15, 2024 the Director of Town Panchayats to take appropriate action against Ms. Sudha within 3 months based on the Ombudsman’s findings. Subsequently, the Director of Town Panchayats instructed the Executive Officer of Alangulam Town Panchayat to initiate the disqualification proceedings after seeking explanation from Ms. Sudha.
Meanwhile, Mr. Subhash Chandra Bose filed ‘contempt petition’ in the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court again seeking action against the Director of Town Panchayats and others for delaying the action against town panchayat chairperson.
As the explanation from the defaulter for not paying the property tax before the stipulated deadline was not acceptable, Ms. Sudha was disqualified from the post of chairperson of Alangulam Town Panchayat, said Executive Officer (In-Charge) G. Venkata Gopu.
Published – October 23, 2025 06:47 pm IST
