Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 26: The Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) has lodged strong protest with the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley against the raids by the Income Tax officials on the premises of the traders/ businessmen in Jammu and harassing them unnecessarily.
An emergency meeting of the traders/ businessmen of Jammu was held in the Chamber House in wake of recent raids and surveys by the Department of Income Tax. In an urgent communication flashed to the Union Finance Minister, the Chamber president lodged his strong protest against the dictatorial attitude of the Income Tax Department in Jammu. The JCCI also questioned the political leaders representing Jammu who are on roads as a part of their campaign seeking votes and support once again and wanted to remind them that the mandate given to them by the people of Jammu shall have to be reconsidered because they have maintained complete silence against these raids and surveys.
The Chamber president, Rakesh Gupta convened the meeting of major affiliated associations to seek their opinion. Gupta said that in case the FM does not take a serious note of JCCI communication then the Chamber shall have no option but to take confrontational stand. He said the future course of action is likely to be announced by tomorrow evening.
In the letter flashed to FM, the JCCI said, “The Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry would like to lodge its strongest protest against the unethical working and unfriendly approach of Income Tax Department with their assesses who are properly filing their Income Tax Returns in Jammu City. The recent raids and surveys conducted in Jammu have left a big question mark on the dubious intensions and working style of the officers who have forgotten that they are “Tax Regulators” and not dictators which is totally uncalled for in a democratic setup. There are sufficient provisions under law to serve notices rather than creating an atmosphere which is neither desirable nor tolerable. There are nearly 51,000 business firms registered in Jammu Province and approximately 48,000 firms in Kashmir Province under the GST Regime. If your Ministry feels and has a firm ideology that they will not act against the “Real Tax evaders “who don’t even file their Income Tax returns on the of excuse of law and order situation, then what message are they trying to give to the Nationalist and Tax compliant society of Jammu? Should the nationalist people of Jammu also create a law and order situation in Jammu Province, too? ”
JCCI chief further maintained that under such circumstances, the Jammu business people would stop cooperating with IT Department and the Chamber shall have no option left but to call for a “Financial Indiscipline Movement and also call for an Indefinite Shutdown ,” till such tactics are stopped.
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