Bengaluru news: Ferrari, Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, Audi… 30 luxury cars seized for not paying ₹3 crore worth taxes

Bengaluru news: The Bengaluru transport department seized 30 luxury cars for not paying up to ₹3 crore in taxes, officials said on February 3.

The cars have been impounded as their owners failed to pay up the taxes required to drive on the state's roads, according to a PTI report.

Ferrari, Porsche, Mercedes… 30 luxury cars seized

The luxury cars seized by the Bengaluru transport department on February 3 include models from Audi, Austin Martin, BMW, Ferrari, Mercedes, Porsche, and Range Rover, the report said.

The operation was headed by Transport Deputy Commissioner C Mallikarjun, along with a team of 41 officials, including Regional Transport Officers B Srinivas Prasad, Deepak, Srinivasappa, and Ranjit, the transport department told PTI.

“These cars were being driven in the state without paying the required taxes and a notice has been issued to recover approximately ₹3 crore in taxes from the seized vehicles,” a senior department official told the agency.

Road Tax in Karnataka Among Highest in States

According to a report by India Today, the road tax in the southern state of Karnataka is among the highest in India. The Karnataka state government uses a formula to determine the tax, which considers factors such as the vehicle's age, cost, fuel type, weight, seating capacity, usage purpose, and engine's cubic capacity. It also looks at whether the vehicle is a used car or was bought in another Indian state.

Thus, tax for a four-wheeler can be between 13-93 per cent based on cost and age of the car. Notably, however, electric vehicles are heavily subsidised — with an EV four-wheeler drawing 4 per cent tax, as per the India Today report.

The report added that from December 2024, Karnataka introduced an additional cess on vehicle registrations, ranging from ₹500 (two-wheelers) to ₹1,000 (four-wheelers).

(With inputs from PTI)