No tax terror, raid raj: Govt tells industry

The government on Thursday strongly rejected industry's claims that the taxmanwas hounding businessmen and asserted that it was trying to promote growth through a series of measures, besides making the administration friendly for taxpayers. It also addressed concerns over the possible misuse of information related to the compliance window for black money, saying data was adequately protected and those coming clean would not be hounded Stock Market Trading Tips

"Is there any atmosphere of fear today? Is there a raid raj or terror raj prevailing today in the country? I would sincerely and strongly believe there is none... If there has been any case of down the line complaint of harassment or improper application of law... whenever problems have been brought to our notice, these problems have been addressed, not only for businesses but for individuals too," revenue secretary Shaktikanta Das told Assocham. 

He said the government is striving to have a transparent and taxpayer-friendly administration. "While implementing the law, your perception cannot match with our perception and the law has to be implemented. So, there could be areas of conflict. So, whenever there are areas of conflict, we have a strong judicial system which provides relief," he said, seeking suggestions on areas where improvements could be made Himanshu Tiwari Astrologer Blog

The comments came amid several industry captains voicing concern over things not changing on the ground despite the government's assurance. Das also rebutted fears over the new black money law. "Black money law has to be strong and stringent so that it acts as a strong deterrent. But, in the implementation of the law, we have provided adequate safeguards to ensure that its implementation is as benign as possible and it does not result in unnecessary harassment or unnecessary exercise of power by anybody." 

The revenue secretary said data available during the compliance window would be closely held and it would not be used to chase people. On GST, Das said the tax rate would be moderate, although a final decision would be taken by the GST Council. He suggested that 25% or 27% rate was not feasible Indian stock market astrology prediction