Why owners of luxe cars slink into the shadows

The confiscation of seven super-expensive cars on Sunday offers a glimpse into the self-effacing world of marque connoisseurship

It was a showdown of sorts at UB City late Sunday night when RTO officials swooped down on the tony pocket and seized seven high-end cars, all without proper documentation.

The drivers put up a resistance, and one of them drove away in his Ferrari after calling up friends in high places.

Marques such as Rolls Royce, Porsche, Mercedes and Jaguar are now in the possession of transport officials.

A day after the confiscation, some owners turned up and agreed to pay their tax dues. The owner of the Porsche will now cough up Rs 35 lakh, while the owner of the Jaguar Rs 14 lakh. The showroom price of the car 2007 Rolls Royce was about Rs 16 crore, according to those in the know.

The Porsche and the Mercedes Benz are priced at about Rs 1 crore each.

Someone called

Transport Commissioner N Shiva Kumar says the confiscation was based on a tipoff. When his team checked the vehicle registry published on the government website Vahan, they had some surprises in store. “The cars had no registration certificate, no insurance and no tax-paid receipts. While the Rolls Royce is not even visible on the Vahan 4 portal, there was a mismatch in the details of the other cars,” he told Metrolife.

He suspects many high-end cars on Bengaluru streets are smuggled or stolen.

“We are still investigating. The drivers of these cars were not forthcoming with information. They got into a spat with our officials,” he told Metrolife.

H Rajanna, assistant regional transport officer, says, “The drivers didn’t have Aadhaar cards or any proof of ID. The car documents were not produced. Among those caught, one Farooq managed to pull strings and leave with his Ferrari and GTR. He made false allegations that we harassed him,” he says.

Puducherry number

Most high-end cars are registered in Puducherry because the road tax there is just 7 per cent, as against 20 per cent of the invoice value in Karnataka.

“Until recently all number plates were fixed at the RTO, but the latest rule is that they be fixed by the manufacturers or dealers,” a senior official says.

A Bengaluru businessman, who owns a fleet of expensive vehicles, says super
luxe cars are registered not just in Puducherry, but also in Kolkata and Chandigarh because the tax rates there are lower.

“You save at least 10% when you get the cars registered out there,” he explains.

Reduce import duty to reduce corruption

There are many like Dr Ravi Prakash, president of the Federation of Historic Vehicles of India, who own a large fleet of high-end and vintage cars. Ravi Prakash owns 12 Rolls Royces and their vintage ranges from 1926 to 1984. “The government must make a concerted effort to bring down the import duty on these foreign cars because that will indirectly reduce corruption. What is happening right now is that some people fudge documents to escape paying high taxes. Cars are smuggled in by air and sea. The owners bribe their way out,” he says. Collectors of vintage vehicles are particularly affected, and the government should keep their interests in mind when it makes rules, he suggests. The Internet has made historic vehicle maintenance way easier. “Spare parts are available online. They now have 3D printers that can exactly get you the part that you are looking for,” he says.

Why anonymous?

Owners of super-luxury cars are reluctant to have them registered in their names. “That is because tax officials assume they are super rich and keep a close eye on them,” says the owner of a fleet of imported cars. Black and hawala money is often used to buy luxury vehicles, and that is another reason owners prefer to remain anonymous. If no one comes to claim seized cars, they will be auctioned, adds the owner.

Rolls Royce in Amitabh Bachchan’s name

Narendra Holkar, additional transport commissioner who led the raid at UB City, says the seized Rolls Royce is a 2007 model originally priced at Rs 16 crore.

“The current owner is Babu of Umra Developers. He says he bought it from Amitabh Bachchan in 2019 but hadn’t transferred the ownership. The driver’s name is Salman Khan,” he says.