The CBDT has issued Instruction No. 01/2016 dated 15.02.2016 in which it has directed Assessing Officers to strictly follow the time limit of six months prescribed under section 154(8) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 to pass rectification orders. The CBDT has also directed the supervisory officers to monitor the adherence to the prescribed time limit and initiate suitable administrative action where failure to adhere to the prescribed time limit is noticed.
We have read such circulars / instructions in the past number of times. Everyone right from Finance Mistry to CBDT to lowest person in I Tax Dept. knows that nothing is going to happen. Here the question is – What action is CBDT going to take against an officer who does not follow these instructions? Such circulars nowhere lays down it. In how many cases CBDT has taken actions against its officials for not following such instructions? CBDT will never come out with such data.
The whole issue is that nobody is accountable to anybody. Nothing can happen to the officials for violating norms laid down.
For example, it is a known fact that no orders are passed giving effect to Appellate Orders passed giving relief to the Assessee wherein refunds are not issued in December to March. If one approaches the officals they will request to wait till April as issue of refund will upset their target of tax collection. There are thousands of such cases, one does not have to submit any evidence for such cases. With computerisation all the data are available with I Tax Dept.
Only thing is that someone should sit down and do data mining, identify erring officials and put such cases in their service records.
If CBDT is really serious about such matters, it should instal software used by MCA where officials are compelled to attend documents submited by the citizens within the time period allotted. If not done, the matter gets escalated to the higher authorities. Unless such a system is installed, we shall read such circulars being issued every year.
Mr. Pradeep you missed another eye wash to the tax payers i.e. CITIZEN CHARTER hung in the corridors of many IT offices. The charter of points are only for hanging and not for observance.
Similarly another institution in I T Department is OMBUDSMAN. It is a rehabilitation center for the just retired CIT level officials giving extension of two years with all facilities like sub-staff, accommodation, car and other fringe benefits besides pocket full of perks and salaries. Did any authority either in the Finance Ministry or in CBDT had ever reviewed the work turned out by these institutions is a matter of grave dismay.
Until and unless such circulars / instructions specify what sort of action against erring officers / supervisory authorities would be taken, all such circulars and instructions are just ornamental to dress the self appraisal reports of such authorities at the end of the year for ACR purposes only.
In a group of cases they had deposited in the bank and left a lien to the department in 1995. The agreement was that soon after the 1st level appeals are disposed of the resultant tax will be collected from the liened deposit amount and refund the excess deposit. The group of assesses won all the appeals up to Tribunal level and they are entitled to get back the lien cancelled and the deposit is released. The assessing officer on the advice of his bosses is postponing the release to the next April every year and not releasing it.
The Revenue Secretary was also approached by the group assessees and RS had given direction to settle the issues. Yet the assessing officer is singing same song of April.
I doubt whether CBDT will initiate action for such repeated false promises since the CBDT itself was the prime accused.
The Aos are very thick skinned as their bosses.for the past 8years they are dragging action on some pretext or the other.The officer had the audacity that the action will be taken in april.this sequence of events is being played out every year for the past 8 years Come April the assessingbofficer gets transferred and the new incumbent has an excuse for not doing the work.It is all a drama being played out with the active connivance of the board.