With over Rs.3,000 crore locked up in disputes pertaining to over 18,000 cases of Sales Tax and Value Added Tax, the Delhi Government has been urged to realise this revenue through redressal mechanisms like mediation before looking at raising taxes in the Capital city in the Budget 2012-23.

In a statement, the All India Tax Advocates Forum (AITAF) said before VAT came into being in 2005, Sales Tax demand of nearly Rs.650 crore was already locked up in as many as 3,249 cases, which are at various stages of appeals. Similarly an amount of nearly Rs.2,400 crore has been locked up in nearly 14,800 objection cases, which are pending before VAT authorities for disposal.

The Delhi Government targeted to raise revenue of over Rs.12,500 crore through VAT in 2011-12. Thus nearly 25 per cent of VAT revenues have been locked up due to pendency of disposal of appeal and objection cases, its president M.K. Gandhi said.

With the exercise for preparation of the Delhi Budget 2012-13 now gaining momentum, the Forum has urged the Delhi Government to refrain from imposing any hike in VAT rates in view of rising inflation .