Income Tax Bar demands continuing of SARAL for IT returns

Lucknow, June 22 (UNI) Income Tax Bar Association has called upon the Centre to immediately withdraw the new tax return forms which is more complicated in comparison to the previous one page 'SARAL'.

Association's Lucknow unit president O P Tiwari claimed that the new forms require quite detailed information which would be difficult for common man to supply like details of cash inflow and outflow transactions.

Addressing a press conference here, Mr Tiwari along with several of his bar members, said that a memorandum in this connection has been sent to the UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and to Finance Ministry to make the new forms optional and continue with the 'SARAL'.

The new forms will require atleast two hours by a chartered accountant or other experts to fill it and thus the fee charged will be much more this time,'' he said.

On May 14, Finance Ministry had notified that the new IT return forms with salaried class employee has to fill a six page return and the business section with a complicated 22-page form.

Earlier one page ' SARAL' was required by the salaried class employees to file their returns.

The new forms will create another hardship for the taxpayers as now there is no need of annexing any document with the requisite form but instead it is required to furnish voluminous information and particulars which itself is quite tedious and cumbersome process,'' Mr Tiwari said.

The Bar members further maintained that even as the last date of filing of IT return has been fixed on July 31, the tender of publication of the new forms were issued yesterday.

UNI