The Indian Cricket team's ODI captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, has been asked to cough up a fine for registering his Hummer H2 as a Mahindra Scorpio. He bought the SUV in 2009 and registered it in his hometown, Ranchi.

The District Transport Officer (DTO) of Ranch, Nagendra Paswan said that Dhoni has not paid the tax for the Hummer since 2010. He also clarified that the vehicle was registered as a Scorpio since, at that time, there was no option to select the brand Hummer. The typist had to select the Indian brand in order to fill additional details and complete the registration.

The registration tax that's levied for a Mahindra Scorpio was Rs 56,000 in 2009, whereas the Hummer's would have been Rs 4 lakh (Dhoni bought it for Rs 1 crore). He'll have to now pay the difference as well as a fine. In addition, Dhoni has the option to pay a one time tax, in case he hasn't, Paswan added.

The question that needs to be answered is, didn't anyone including Dhoni check the registration papers to date? Has he been driving around, turning a blind eye to the law? Do transport departments allow celebrities the leeway to get away from paying their dues? How has the transport department of Ranchi suddenly woken up from its slumber? Is it because the 2016 T20 Cricket World Championship is underway?

While there are many questions that need answers, this definitely is not the first time that a celebrity has been caught evading taxes.

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Dainik Savera Times