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| Photo Credit: MURALI KUMAR K
Resolving long-pending tax dispute, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday, proposed withdrawing all outstanding direct tax demands upto ₹25,000 from 1962 to 2009-10. In her interim budget speech, she noted that a large number of petty or disputed direct tax demands were burdening the system, dating as far as 1962. This would help 1 crore taxpayers, said Ms. Sitharaman.
“To improve taxpayer services, there are a large number of petty or disputed direct tax demands, many of them dating as far back as 1962, which cause anxiety to taxpayers. I propose to withdraw such outstanding direct tax demands upto ₹25,000 pertaining to years upto 2009-10 and Rs. 10,000 for the period from 2010 to 2015. This will help 1 crore taxpayers,” the Finance Minister said.
She also highlighted the government’s move to introduce Faceless Assessment and Appeal, thereby imparting greater efficiency, transparency and accountability and that by introducing a new form 26AS to file income tax returns the process has been made “simpler and easier”. Currently, the average time taken for processing of returns stands reduced from 93 days to 10 days from 2013-14, Ms. Sitharaman said.
The Finance minister presented her sixth consecutive budget speech to Parliament on Day 2 of the Budget session. Her hour-long speech was for an interim budget for the FY 2024-25 as a ‘stop gap’ measure for the transition period between April and June/July. After the Lok Sabha elections scheduled to be held in April-May, the new government will present a full-fledged budget. The roadmap for a ‘Vikasit Bharat’ (developed India) will be unveiled in the next budget speech.
In September last year, the income tax department asked taxpayers to respond to its intimation regarding outstanding demands for 2022-23 to clear refunds faster. In 2022-23, as many as 7.09 crore income tax returns (ITRs) were filed of which 6.96 crore ITRs were verified and 6.46 crore processed. The I.T department said that the notices for unsettled tax demands were issued to provide taxpayers relief in line with “principles of natural justice”.
With the withdrawal of historical tax demands, the hassles faced by both the I.T department and citizens will be greatly reduced.