The CBDT has instituted a scheme for rewarding income-tax employees for “innovative ideas” and “special efforts” in their work. However, the baffling aspect is that the CBDT has turned a blind eye to the rampant corruption being carried on under its nose. In the latest episode, four high-ranking officials, including a Principal Commissioner of Income-tax, have been caught by the CBI for alleged corruption
Dreaded Den Of Corruption
The Income-tax department has earned the notorious reputation of being a den of corruption.
We saw a few days ago that an IRS officer named B.B. Rajendra Prasad, who is presently posted as CIT(A) in Mumbai, was arrested by the CBI for allegedly receiving a bribe of Rs. 2 crore for passing favourable appellate orders.
Earlier, a Principal Chief Commissioner (IRS) named Janaki Arun Kumar was arrested By the CBI for alleged corruption.
Another Chief CIT named Anil Goel was arrested for allegedly amassing a fortune of Rs. 30 crore from extortion.
M Krishnaswamy, an officer of the 1988 batch of Indian Revenue Service (IRS), who is of the rank of Commissioner of Income-tax and is presently posted as Director (Investigation), Settlement Commission, Delhi, was arrested for amassing wealth of Rs. 6 crore which was evident from the palatial bungalow that he built in Palani, Chennai.
Yet another Additional Commissioner of Income-tax named Ajay Kumar Singh became a crorepati during his reign in the department. The CBI sleuths were shocked to find a treasure trove of riches including 23 properties in Mumbai, bank accounts, share certificates, and cash.
Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of the CBI in flushing out the corrupt elements, there is no respite from corruption. The motivation level of the corrupt officers to indulge in the nefarious activity of extortion remains high because there are no checks and balances within the department to detect the malpractices.
Principal CIT and three officers booked by the CBI
According to the latest press release issued by the CBI read with press reports, searches were conducted on Wednesday at the premises of Tapas Kumar Dutta, the Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, Ranchi, Arvind Kumar, the Additional Commissioner of Income-tax, Ranjeet Kumar Lal, ITO and Ganguly, ITO.
Principal Commissioner #IncomeTax, #Ranchi, #TapasKumarDutta arrested in #corruption case.
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 13, 2017
The CBI has alleged that the four officials favoured five Kolkata-based businessmen, identified as Biswanath Agarwal, Santosh Chowdhury, Aakash Agarwal, Vinod Agarwal and Arvind Agarwal, and their companies, in the matter of taxes and for taking illegal gratification.
Principal commissioner of Income Tax (Jharkhand) Tapas Kumar Dutta detained by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials for further investigation after a raid at his residence in Ranchi on July 11(PTI Photo)
The CBI has stated that the Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, Ranchi, while functioning as such during the years 2016 & 2017, entered into a criminal conspiracy with Additional CIT, Ranchi, ITO (Tech.), Another Officer, Income Tax Department & five private persons, all Kolkata based businessmen & infamous entry operators and a CA of Kolkata for getting Income Tax assessment files of their different assessee companies transferred from Kolkata/ Hazaribagh to Ranchi for providing undue favour to those assesses, who have been charged with heavy tax liability, in lieu of huge bribe. It was further alleged that the Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, Ranchi has already issued favourable orders in the case of private companies, who already paid huge bribe, which has allegedly been stashed with a private person.
Rs. 3.5 crore in cash recovered
During the search operation, the CBI seized Rs 3.5 crore in cash, five kg gold and some incriminating documents from the premises owned by Dutta. Searches were on at several locations.
The CBI raids took place at 18 residential and office premises of the accused in Kolkata and five places in Ranchi in Jharkhand, a CBI official said.
Award by CBDT for “innovative ideas” and “special efforts”
In the midst of this dismal state of affairs, the CBDT has issued a letter dated 6th July 2017 stating that it intends to reward employees of the income-tax department who “by their innovative ideas and special efforts as well as sustained devotion and commitment to duty have contributed to promoting excellence in the field of direct taxation”.
It is not known what the parameter is for determining “innovative ideas and special efforts”.
If the making of high-pitched assessments and using high-handed measures for enforcing recovery from taxpayers is a criterion, then there will be no dearth of applicants from the income-tax department for the award.
It is high time that the CBDT stops thinking of means to “reward” the AOs but instead starts thinking of means to “punish” them for their nefarious activities!
Tax payers had expected that there will not be harrasment and corruption in computerized assessment – online assessment and proceedings etc. However, recently we have information that even additions are being made by CPC in intimations u/s 143.1.a on issues on which there are favorable judgments of the Supreme Court and many High Courts. huge additions are being made, in intimation, even when the assessee had objected for the same. For example, deductions from employees are disallowed even though payments have been made within due date u/s 139.1 and are allowable as per settled legal position, club expenses are disallowed , although allowable as per SC ruling and observations etc.
Therefore, it appears that CPC is helping other officers by initiating first step of disallowing so that assessee has to approach other authorities.
In some cases it was seen on 01.10.2019 that there was no intimation issued, no notice u/s 143.2 was issued, however, subsequently intimation has been posted in my account with an earlier date.
Therefore, it is clear that majority of people join government services to enjoy power to harass public and to make money. Otherwise, there seems no logic in highly qualified engineers (even M.tech), doctors, MBA , scientists trying to become a government officers at low rank.
There must be ban on such qualified ( or likely to be qualified) persons from joining government services in any rank.
Public money spent on educating them to become a doctor, engineers, scientist, … should not be wasted by giving them junior post of Assessing Officer (power to harass is high but work involved is more of clerical type with some administrative work only) .
Such one up blaming of officers wo’nt do any good. Rather it will demoralize the hardworking and sincere ones.
In a country like India, nobody bothers on the crux of the problem that leads to rampant corruption.This massive tree has grown over few decades prior ti independence in a slow and steady pace.
Large scale consumerism in Indian Society has brought this change in a rapid way in recent days.
Its no secret that each middle class household in India vie to match up with the assets, gadgets and consumables that reach the next of our neighbor even if one substitute is still doing its rounds in our house. In the process , we end up creating large scale scrap items in our locality.
Now, who will bell the cat, only some kind of a social revolution will help us to ensure a clean national character.
Such blanket one up blaming of officers wo’nt do any good.The Power which calls the shot at national level must garner enough courage to nip it at the bud,i mean ,the Corruption be it small or big.
In a country like India, I find people tend to use resources(Financial) in a big way and walking in the path of hyper Consumerism. Every middle class family member now tends to match up with his neighbor in terms all productive,non-productive assets, gadgets, consumables and the like even if already a substitute is available at hand.At the end of the day we scrap out workable,usable assets and gadgets in search of the improved versions even if , the same is not suitable to our needs.These habits lead us to a situation, where we crave for speed money to immediately meet these unreasonable wants.
Now, who will bell the cat to save the national character, only a social revolution can do the trick,
The reported corruption is just tip of iceberg. Recent reporting about income-tax authorities involved in corruption gives impression as if major corruption is in IT department.
If IT department want to make that its officers are less corrupt, then IT department must make efforts and carry out search, survey and thorough scrutiny of all government employees (includign IT department officers) of Centrla Governemtn, State governments, and local bodies and examine trails of all their transactions, trips and tours,weekend activities, expenditure, assets then most probabily they will find that, in past they had wasted lot of time by searching busienssman, the real worth like gold mines are with governemtn officers who have piledup huge wealth and these are known and can be known easily.
If IT authorities act honestly in assessing escaped incomes of governemtn employees, then it will also be instrumental to reduce corruption.
They must not chase hardearned money of businessman, just to find tax planning done to reduce tax burden. Government officers have extra money which is illgotten and is received by adopting harassment practices over public.
Hope Income-tax Departmetn shall favor publi at large by conducitn search , survey, in-depth enquiry of income, escaped income of governmetn officers, and employees.
PM Modi try to find out Balck Money from businessmen, It’s found from High & Medium level officers, Each & every Politician has Black Money, example Lalu Prasad Yadav, Chhagan Bhujbal,A.R.Antuley, Rajiv Gandhi in Bofforce Top Case, Sonia Gandhi & Rahul Gandhi in National Herald Case, So many politicians are involved in corruption, only once time any MP or MLA elected He/She collect benami property upto unlimited suppose they also don’t now how much property he has? Don’t waste time CBI start to rad behind all these political persons & Government’s officers, PM Modi you can found so many balck money like demonetization fund like Rs.500/- & Rs.1000/- currency note, still RBI count, India our county became No.1 in the World in all range.
Regards
Still can’t understand that all these high level officers like (CIT, D.C.I.T, A.C.I.T., A.O.) who was caught in corruption then, why should taken again in job? Why not suspended for life time? Why not Government taken heavy action against them? Cause All political members are also joined with them. The Central Government has declare the notification that such of officer’s are caught in corruption, Him/Her not accepted as Government’s department even though his legal heirs also not allowed in Government job. Why not recover all properties in the benefits of the nation? that’s properties are Nation’s properties, The Government has also become policy of the Act & Rules very easily like take highest tax but the procedure is easy one, All these Government’s officer’s taken the benefits of misleading Act’s & Rules, So people are tired with the procedure.
Government has request to proceed easily & collect higher tax, peoples are ready to pay it, Even in any Government’s office every Government staff demand corruption(money) when it’s easy or hard they want money, In income-tax department every clerk, Inspectors Assessing Officer, like any officer demand money (corruption) for work, which is easy one OR hard one,
with draconian laws on cash dealings , benami properties , the menace of corruption is going to be manifold not less.
look at the mockery of e assessment , hidden han and pocket of additional commissioners in assessment proceedings with or without the blessings of still superior officers and what does the poor CA do ? succumbed and be called originator of corruption by a person no less than the Honourable Prime minister himself //
Even PMO cannot do any thing against such corrupt supporting CBDT. The PMO was forwarding all complaints and grievances to it. The CBDT never follows on such grievances. This is happening for the last 3 years in one of known cases. The petitioner was pursuing relentlessly reminding the PMO every month and all are being forwarded to CBDT with no action. I think that the petitioner should be blamed for not leaving the issue to his fate.
Every politician is more or less at the mercy of these IRS Officers. What PMO can do even you relentlessly remind.
who is superior? The PM or an IRS officer? If it is IRS officer then it is ridiculous to talk about corruption black money etc. by PM and his aids.
It is a matter of disgrace for the CBDT that an out side agency like CBI had to jump into action to nab such corrupt officers. It is also disgrace on the part of CBDT not to to conclude certain unfounded complaints made by such similar officers of high ranks in the department even after 10 years of such complaints being found by the inquiry officers and submitted to CBDT. Can any one say that the CBDT is impartial?
It would not serve much purpose to keep finding and punishing the corrupt unless “fresh inflow” of such corrupt lot is not stopped from entering the system from the starting point. How ? Redraft the IRS & IAS Acts, redraft the government servants rules, which currently gives unlimited powers to dictate and extort money with such powers, which allows them to harass those who do not obey or surrender to them. We all know by now, how the exams are conducted in some states.Try & compare the scenario of extorting money ( one may term this as corruption also !) with pre-independent era. These officers enjoy powers under the statute like IRS, IAS etc. This ACTS like IRS, IAS, etc were drafted in British time to RULE the people & DRAG all the rich resources of India. These were designed to RULE people. Unlimited powers were given to Officers so that they can suppress the people. Under those rules the British govt officers were never at fault. Those officers looted the country because they were supposed to do this. IRS & IAS ACTS dates back to more than 100 years. Same Rules & Acts are still continuing even with comas & full stops !! The next generation of officers ( India n) saw the benefits & continued the legacy even after independence. So, in effect, its nothing but misuse of powers which is programmed in the minds of IRS & IAS & other protected Govt officers, with the help of the same ACTS & RULES DESIGNED BY THE BRITISH.
IT IS ALREADY ANNOUNCED WHY TO COMMENT-LET innovative ideas” and “special efforts”BE DEFINED
PL NOTE PRESENT REV SEC MR ADHIA IS BEST PERSON HE IS MAINLY LOOKING
in fact very ministers and ministry are full of corruption, what one called modi , could he do any good when all businesses indulge in corruption of all kinds,obvious PM MODI BETTER RESIGN,we need capable administrator n capable strategists, what we see modi induces one to do wrongs like he appointed Jyothi as CEC, what he responds to Hon SC,if modi does wrongs what control on others, any can guess,so I want his govt resigns reccomends dissolution of Lok sabha,else president promulgate emergency invokes art 352.
Few more officers of Delhi also are required to be caught by CBI such as [clipped], [clipped], [clipped] they are possessing huge wealth
nothing will happen waste of time and energy