One lakh ITR notices in 14 months

Income Tax Department has issued around one lakh notices to assessees for undeclared or underreported income. All the returns were filed 4-6 years ago.

Officials told that the notices, which have mostly been sent out to people having annual income of over Rs. 50 lakh, were dispatched during the last 14 months. The income tax law empower officers to reopen assessments, from up to 6 years ago.

“One lakh notices are sent where information is available that income is more than what you have filed, or there are reasons to believe that income has been understated or where they have not filed it, and information is there that they should have filed it.”

“I want to convey that these are not just being thoughtlessly sent and I have been assured by the chairman CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) that by March 2024, this entire block will be cleared,” she said.

Nirmala Sitharaman further highlighted that the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) had completed a scrutiny assessment of 55,000 notices sent after a Supreme Court judgment in May 2023.

“The board today is not sitting over notices which have been issued and it is not a place where people are gaming the system; there is a clear-cut approach,” she said.

Nirmala Sitharaman also said that technology is the answer to most of the problems, and that it has not only helped catch tax evasion but is also aiding in assuring taxpayers a transparent, objective and friendly income tax regime.