FM Arun Jaitley rejects Opposition call on Aadhaar delink with I-T

New Delhi: Brushing aside the Opposition’s demand to roll back the move making it mandatory to furnish Aadhaar details for filing income-tax returns and applying for PAN, finance minister Arun Jaitley said the link was needed as people had multiple PAN cards and used these to evade tax.

Replying to the debate on Finance Bill 2017, which was passed in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday with 40 official amendments, Mr Jaitley said: “Aadhaar has biometric details so its chances of misuse become minimal... It is an anti-evasion measure which will benefit the country. So the government considers it right to implement it.”

Replying in the affirmative to Bhartruhari Mahtab’s (BJD) contention that the government was “forcing” people to have Aadhaar, Mr Jaitley said: “Yes, we are.. If the technology... has a network of 108 crore people, and all tax-paying households have it, and they give it along with their ITR, then the scope for fraud and tax evasion comes down.”

In future, Aadhaar may be the only identity proof that a person needs to have, the minister said. “A stage may come when the unique identity card (Aadhaar) may become the sole card... There is a Social Security number in America. In India, Aadhaar could be its counterpart,” Mr Jaitley added.

People who don’t have Aadhaar can opt for provisions such as that they have applied for Aadhaar, he said.

The other main amendments in the Finance Bill included the reduction of the cap on cash transactions from Rs 3 lakhs to Rs 2 lakhs from April 1, the merger of tribunals of different ministries and the proposal to launch electoral bonds.

The finance minister said while the cap on cash transactions was being lowered to curb black money generation, the move to introduce electoral bonds would help cleanse political funding. On the tribunals’ merger, he said it was being done to usher in common service conditions.

The minister ruled out imposing any tax on agricultural incomes, saying it was a state matter. “It is not in the legislative competence of the Centre. It is a state subject. There is no tax on agriculture and it won’t be levied,” he declared.

Just before the bill was passed, BJD members staged a walkout over the linking of Aadhaar with PAN while Congress members walked out as the government was non-committal on farm loan waivers. Later, Trinamul MPs too staged a walkout over the Aadhaar issue.

Mr Jaitley sought the advice of political parties on ways to cleanse political funding, adding all suggestions will be considered while drafting the final policy on electoral bonds. “To clean the system, suggestions will be necessary,” he said.

Expressing hope that the Goods and Services Tax will be introduced from July 1, Mr Jaitley said a consensus has been arrived at between the Centre and states. “The government will bring before Parliament four GST bills and there will be a fifth law as the Excise and Customs Acts will have to be amended. We will bring these bills together to Parliament in the next few days,” he said.

Sounding a warning to around 9.29 lakh entities which had not yet responded to the income-tax department’s queries over the cash deposited by them which did not match their income profile, the minister said: “About 8.71 lakh people have sent their explanations, and those who haven’t responded... the income-tax department will take action against them as per the Income-Tax Act.”

During the 50-day post-demonetisation period, 18 lakh entities deposited scrapped notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 that were not commensurate with their known income means.

The Lok Sabha, incidentally, saw the BJP and its allies in near full attendance on Wednesday, with members seen nudging and jostling party colleagues to move and yield space in the Lower House. There was a clogging of MPs’ cars inside the Parliament House campus. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had warned party MPs to ensure attendance in the House as he may summon them anytime.