Panel on direct tax law gets 3 more months.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said on Friday that the task force constituted for drafting new direct tax law has been given a three-month extension till May 31, after the earlier deadline expired on Thursday.

Along with the extended tenure, the current term of the task force, which is headed by (CBDT) member Akhilesh Ranjan, has inducted another member in Pragya S Saksena, an Indian Revenue Services (IRS) official. The CBDT said the changes were approved by the finance minister.

The other members include Girish Ahuja (chartered accountant), Rajiv Memani (chairman and regional managing partner of EY India), Mukesh Patel (Practicing Tax Advocate), Mansi Kedia (Consultant, ICRIER) and GC Srivastava (retired IRS and advocate).

The task force was initially constituted in November 2017 under the then CBDT member Arbind Modi. However, it failed to submit the report before Modi’s superannuation. The current panel continued with the same members but a different head.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during the annual conference of tax officers in September 2017, had observed that the Income Tax Act, 1961, was more than 50 years ago and it needs to be redrafted. The task force was assigned to draft direct tax laws in line with norms prevalent in other countries, incorporating international best practices, and keeping in mind the economic needs of the country and related matters.

Courtesy :- Financial Express.

#IncomeTax