The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested Dy. Commissioner of Income Tax for alleged Involvement in Sabotaging Faceless Scheme of Income Tax Assessment.
The CBI has made arrests including of an IRS officer of the rank of Dy. Commissioner of Income Tax and a private person in connection with their involvement in an ongoing investigation of a case related to sabotaging the Faceless Scheme of Income Tax Assessment.
The Investigation conducted so far revealed that the arrested private person and the Dy. Commissioner of Income Tax in conspiracy with others have been contacting various assesses of pending high value IT assessment cases, promising favourable orders in their income tax cases under scrutiny in lieu of pecuniary benefits.
It may be recalled that the Government of India has introduced the Faceless Scheme of Income Tax Assessment as a futurist reform in Tax Administration with an aim to increase transparency, reduce human interface and thereby prevent corruption. This scheme is called Faceless’ simply because the Assesse will not see the face of his or her Assessing Officer and will also not be able to know as to who will be conducting the assessments. This will reduce the interface, discretion and corruption.
However, these accused persons have been clandestinely collecting and disseminating confidential insider information pertaining to this scheme like the name of the assessment officer, the issues under scrutiny etc., pertaining to pending big ticket assessment/appeal cases, to the Assesses and thereafter collecting bribe amounts.
The arrested accused are being produced before the Court of CBI. Various incriminating documents, evidence of payment of undue gratification and some digital electronic evidence were recovered during searches. Initially a complaint was received from the income Tax Department in this regard and an enquiry was initiated by CBI. On finding prima facie material, the case was registered by CBl against one Deputy Commissioner (IRS)(T) & two Inspectors of Income Tax Department, five Chartered Accountants and one private person and unknown others on the allegations of attempts by these accused to defy and sabotage the purpose of the Faceless Scheme of Assessment’ introduced by Government of India.
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