Ahmedabad: The civic body’s policy making body has opted to sell 16 offices and 29 shops in the Sindhu Bhavan Multilevel Parking Complex through sale deeds, bypassing the 18% GST applicable on 99-year lease deeds. The standing committee approved the proposal on Thursday. An official announcement is expected shortly. Previously, the AMC leased out properties for 99 years, but the GST had prompted a change. In July 2023, AMC attempted to sell 68 shops floor-wise in the same complex, offering 12,868.62 sq m of office-type space on the ground, first and fifth floors at a base price of Rs 197 crore. The auction failed to attract buyers for the first and fifth floors. Only one bidder emerged for the 4,158.33 sq m ground floor, bidding Rs 80 crore, though payment remains pending. AMC has now extended the deadline and will now auction the remaining units via sale deed. Standing committee chairman Devang Dani confirmed, “If the property is sold through a 99-year lease deed, GST is applicable. So now, the shops/offices will be sold via sale deed.”