I-T Dept Kickstarts Operation Clean Money: 18 Lakh Accounts Identified For Verification

Pursuant to the government’s ‘shock and awe’ move to counter black money in the nation, the Income Tax Department (ITD) kickstarted Operation Clean Money on Tuesday. The initiative seeks to bring large and dubious cash deposits undertaken during the note ban phase under the scanner by employing data analytics for comparison of demonetisation data with information in ITD databases.

The first phase of the clean money operation involves e-verification of dubious and large cash transactions made from 9^th November to 30^th December 2016.

The Income Tax Department has already identified 18 lakh such persons whose deposits are questionably high in comparison to their profile.

The taxpayers under this phase have to revert back with their response within 10 days.

In case of failure to tender any response, a notice from the ITD would be served along with enforcement actions under the Income Tax Act and other applicable laws.

Cases for verification would be selected through data analytics, based on approved risk criteria. The cases selected would be probed further and request for additional information and its response would be fed in electronically. The information on the online portal will be dynamic, getting updated on receipt of new information, response and data analytics.

The responses, thus obtained, would be assessed in the light of information collected. In case of viable justification, the case would be closed and the assessee would not have to visit the Income Tax Office. It has also been stated that the verification would be closed if the cash deposit is declared under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojna (PMGKY).

In an attempt to reduce the compliance cost and optimising resources, the department has enabled online verification of these transactions. The users can access information in respect of these cases through the e-filing window of the PAN holder at the portal https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in.

As per the press note, the PAN holder can view the information using the link “Cash Transactions 2016” under “Compliance” section of the portal. The taxpayer will be able to submit online explanation without any need to visit Income Tax office.

The taxpayers would also be intimated via email and SMS for submitting online response on the e-filing portal. The department also urged tax payers to register themselves on e-filing portal https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in, by clicking on the ‘Register Yourself’ link. Registered taxpayers should verify and update their email address and mobile number on the e-filing portal to receive electronic communication.

A detailed user guide and quick reference guide is available on the portal to assist the taxpayer in submitting online response. In case of any difficulty in submitting online response, helpdesk at 1800 4250 0025 may be contacted.

Read the press release here.

This article has been made possible because of financial support from Independent and Public-Spirited Media Foundation.