Government doggedly after `high priority’ tax dodgers

The government today said it is ready with letters to around 70,000 ''high priority'' assessees seeking disclosure of their real income and payment of income tax accordingly.

The revenue department has set up a Compliance Management Cell to ensure follow-up action and track return filing and tax payment of the target segment, an official release said today.

The letters are being sent in two batches this month itself, the finance ministry said in a statement adding, ''The first batch of 35,000 letters has been dispatched on 20 May 2013."

The exercise is in continuation of crackdown on tax defaulters which the government launched last fiscal. The directorate of systems had then identified about 12,19,832 non-filers linked to more than 47 million information records of PAN holders, about whom specific information is available in the annual information return (AIR) of the I-T department's central information branch.

Letters were also sent in three batches to 1,05,000 high priority cases seeking to know whether the person had filed his income tax return or not. The letter contained the summary of the information of financial transaction(s) along with a customised response sheet.

The government has now picked up the top 70,000 from among the 1,05,000 high priority assessees identified as high-profile cases for follow-up and monitoring.

The finance ministry said a large number of taxpayers have filed return of income and paid up taxes after the initiation of the exercise.

"Taxes of more than Rs600 crore has been paid as self assessment tax and advance tax by the target segment in the last three months," the ministry added.

"Government once again urges all tax payers to disclose their true income and pay appropriate taxes within the current financial year, the statement added.

The government plans to collect over Rs6,68,000 crore from direct taxes in the current fiscal, against Rs5,65,000 crore collected in the previous fiscal.