New Delhi: There is no restriction on the Indian National Congress (INC) using any of its bank accounts, but the alleged income tax dues of ₹115 crore attached by the tax department will be transferred to the exchequer as per the procedure followed in the case of any citizen defaulting on tax dues, a person informed about the working of the tax department said on Friday.
If the funds are insufficient, the same would be recovered as and when they are deposited into the accounts, the person cited above said, requesting not to be identified.
This comes after news reports of a Congress party leader saying on Friday that the party’s bank accounts were unfrozen by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) after the party filed an appeal before it. The party earlier in the day said that tax authorities had frozen its main bank accounts, impacting all political activity, www.hindustantimes.com reported on Friday. ITAT will hear the case next on 21 February, the person quoted above said.
Queries emailed to the spokesperson for the finance ministry and to the Congress party on Friday evening remained unanswered till press time.
The person quoted above said that the process followed by the tax department is the same as in the case of any citizen defaulting on tax obligations. The tax dispute relates to the 2018-19 assessment year in which tax returns of FY18 were to be filed. The alleged tax dues are about ₹103 crore, later modified to ₹105 crore and an interest amount of ₹32 crore, the person said.
From different accounts of the party, ₹115 crore is being attached by the tax department, which is allegedly due, the person said. “However, no bank operation has been stopped for INC. What has happened is routine tax procedure and it has nothing to do with the assessee being a political party,” the person said.
Earlier in the day, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged in a social media post that the government had frozen the accounts of the country’s largest opposition party just before the Lok Sabha elections. “This is a deep blow to democracy,” he wrote on social media platform X in Hindi.
Kharge also alleged the political funding through electoral bonds received by rivals as “unconstitutional money.”
The person cited earlier also said that the government will study the Supreme Court’s Thursday’s order holding the electoral bond scheme unconstitutional and mandating state-run SBI to disclose the details of purchasers, in the context of the confidentiality that banks usually give to their clients.
The apex court on Thursday asked SBI not to issue any more electoral bonds, to provide identity details of those who bought them, and to also give details of bonds redeemed by each political party to the Election Commission. While the bonds offered anonymity to the buyers, the advantage of the scheme, as per the government, is that the political donations given through banking channels were legitimate funds, not unaccounted for funds that can be the case if given in cash.
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it’s all here, just a click away! Login Now!
Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
Published: 16 Feb 2024, 11:51 PM IST