In pursuance of the directions of the MHA, lieutenant-governor Najeeb Jung has directed the AAP government to “rescind” its notification of August 4, 2015, in which circle rates of agricultural land was increased, without seeking his approval, in a range of Rs 1 crore to Rs 3.5 crore in the national capital.

The L-G’s directive has raised a major question on the fate of those properties which had been registered on the basis of new revised circle rates from August 4, 2015, to October 6, 2016. It is reliably learnt that the L-G has now sought a fresh proposal after rectifying infirmities that he had pointed out in the government’s notification.

Circle rate is the minimum rate for property or assets (plots, independent houses, flats) in a particular area or locality. From a realtor’s point of view, circle rate is the minimum value at which one can register a property. The circle rates are always lower than the existing market rates, which in turn are determined by market forces driven by demand and supply policy.

A senior officer said the withdrawal of the notification would result in the 2008 circle rates kicking in where per acre rate was Rs 53 lakh. But the AAP government had, in its first Budget, steeply hiked the rates in a range of Rs 1 crore to Rs 3.5 crore per acre.