Prior to the state administration’s decision to do away with zero-stamp duty on registration of property in the name of a female member in a family, Kashmir responded overwhelmingly to the move which was seen as one leading to empowerment of women in the conflict-hit region.
In the summer capital Srinagar alone, more than 10,000 properties including land and houses have been registered in the name of female members of families in the past nine months, the data accessed from sub-registrar city’s (Srinagar) office, reveals.
A senior official said there was an “encouraging response” in other districts as well.
He said though there was no cumulative data yet about total number of properties registered in the name of females in all districts, the people were responding “positively” to the move.
The previous government headed by Mehbooba Mufti had taken the step, described by activists as “revolutionary”, to abolish stamp duty on registration of property in the name of a female family member.
Earlier, women had to pay 5 percent stamp duty on land or estate purchased within the municipal limits and 3.5 percent in rural areas, compared to men who paid 7 percent and 5 percent respectively.
The governor’s administration however revoked the previous stamp duty order last month and issued a notification saying women would have to pay 3 percent stamp duty.
While the order evoked criticism from women activists and politicians, the administration defended the move, saying it (abolishment of the stamp duty) would have resulted in loss of Rs 300 crore to the state annually.
An official said big business establishments had started to register properties in the name of female members of their families to avoid paying stamp duty.
He said the 3 percent duty imposed is lowest in any state. “In some states it is at least 7 percent,” the official said.
But such was the enthusiasm shown by the people to “empower women” that from around 20 applications per-day at the beginning, the sub-registrar’s office would get around 50 applications before the stamp duty order was revoked.
The decision to revoke the stamp duty order has come as a jolt for women particularly single mothers, struggling to make both ends meet.
“I was already struggling to buy some land to construct my own house. The zero stamp duty would have saved me some bucks but the order (by governor’s administration) has shattered my plans,” said a single mother from uptown Srinagar who has separated from her husband seven years ago.
Criticising the administration’s order, she said: “This zero stamp duty had not only secured future of female members of family but also given respect and honor to them. Nobody else can understand it better than me how this order (zero stamp duty) would have gone to empower women of the state.”
According to government data, asset ownership in the state is largely dominated by men, while approximately 33 percent women in the 15-49 age group own a house. In case of land ownership, only about 23 percent women in Jammu and Kashmir hold property in their name, while 73 percent men own land.
As of 2017, only 18 percent women aged 15-49 were employed in the 12 months, according to the National Family Health Survey, compared to 75 percent men employed in the same period. The female literacy rate in the state is at 56.43 per cent, compared to 76.75 percent for males.
Arshie Zuhar, an advocate at the high court, said the decision to exempt women of stamp duty was “one of the finest decisions” towards women empowerment.