Not to speak of top and well-known business magnates of the State, even the Government and semi-Government organizations are among the tax evaders giving the impression that they have one and all ganged up to loot the state exchequer to their heart’s content. The loot is in hundreds of crores of rupees and it seems that the looters are hand in glove with authorities. This is a sad state of affairs and bodes ill for the one and all. While hearing a PIL case filed by Balwinder Singh and others, the Divisional Bench of the J&K High Court has expressed its displeasure with the Income Tax Department for failing to make recovery within time and within rules. Referring to the status report, the Divisional Bench has made the cryptic remark that the report reveals little but hides more. Significantly the reason given for non recovery of bulk of the tax is that the defaulters have been categorized as “untraceable”. This is a very crude and untenable excuse which evens laymen will contradict. Are the big business magnates of Srinagar like M/s Mattoo Worsted Spinning unknown concerns and not traceable? Likewise, M/s Niaz Ahmad Mubeen, Sonwar are also included in the category of untraced defaulters. There are similar other names in the list categorized untraceable.
According to the status report the total amount recoverable from non-traceable defaulters is Rs 23.44 crore from Jammu and Rs.78.80 crore from Kashmir division. Keeping in view the large amount of unrecovered amount of tax and also the slow pace of recovery, the Divisional Bench has come to the conclusion that there is every possibility of connivance at various levels of administration and Taxation Department. Though the Bench has not mentioned any particular officer or agency that could be behind the loot, it is obvious that keeping such large amount pending for such a long time cannot happen unless there is nexus between the tax payers and tax collectors. The matter is too serious to be left only to the Commercial Tax Department. It has to be emphasized that the taxes are the important source of funding big projects of development in the country and the State. If there is deliberate defaulting, it does not bode well for the nation. It is easy for the taxation department to catch the small fries by neck and make them pay the tax or be prepared for penalty and even a jail term. But in the case of big fish, the officials expected to make the recovery hide behind one or the other pretext. We cannot understand the logic of categorizing a defaulter as “untraceable”. This is an ambiguous term perhaps devised by people with vested interest. In present day social system, no person can go untraced. In particular, when the defaulter is a well known business magnate with very powerful clout in the ruling party or the coalition Government, the term “untraceable” is ridiculous.
The sum and substance of tax evasion to this incredible proportion is that nobody has even an iota of patriotism and nationalism in him or her, be it the private business man or the Government functionary or the semi-Government functionary. They are definitely anti-national because they are callously depriving the nation of the benefit of rapid development and uplifting of the poverty stricken people. How can the wheels of development turn unless there is fuelling and greasing which means the funds that should come uninterruptedly? Citing the example of J&K Minerals, a semi autonomous organization, we find that against arrears of Rs 3,38,48,317 recovery of only Rs 4 lakh has been made up to November 20, 2013. Why has not been there an inquiry in the case and why the organization should go scot free from being taken punitive action against. Likewise the case of migrants who are running business and are on the list of the Commercial Taxation Department should also be examined closely by the Relief Commissioner and necessary action has to be taken.
Evidently, the Divisional Bench is not satisfied with the status report nor has it entertained the plea of “untraced” defaulters as stated in the status report. It has also passed strictures against the Commercial Tax Department for slow recovery of taxes. Thus it has given the department reprieve till February 5, 2014 to file the updated status report for the consideration of the court. The DB has taken a right decision and ordinary people appreciate the thinking of the Court that politically connected and influential persons will not be allowed to evade taxes. The taxes should be recovered along with penalty for willfully concealing the income and hoodwinking the Government. Once the tax evaders are unmasked, they will find themselves looked down upon in society. That will be the social punishment besides whatever punishment the law of the land stipulates for them.
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