‘Fear-mongering officials...’: Delhi man slams I-T dept after paying ₹50,000 fee to resolve Re 1 dispute

Apoorv Jain, whose post on microblogging site X, claiming that he paid a hefty sum of ₹50,000 to settle a Re 1 Income Tax dispute went viral, has asked the Income Tax Department to consider a ‘overhaul’ of their system. Jain has also recommended that I-T officials re-consider their ‘fear mongering’ attitude, which makes taxpayers feel like ‘criminals’.

After his post when viral on social media, Apoorv Jain was approached by the Income Tax Department on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). The I-T department asked Apoorv Jain to share details of the issue and write to orm@cpc.incometax.gov.in for proper escalation.

Apoorv Jain, a Delhi resident, had claimed that he had to pay a hefty fee of ₹50,000 to a chartered accountant to settle an Income Tax dispute. However, he said, the final amount of the dispute ended up being a measly Re 1.

“Paid 50000/- fee to CA for a IT notice I received recently wherein the final disputed value turned out to be Re 1/-. I am not joking. 🙃”, Jain's viral post on X read.

After Jain was approached by Income tax watchdog, he came up with an intelligent reply suggesting pointers to ‘better taxpayers' experience.

“I am intrigued as to what help can you even offer me now? You sent me a ridiculous inflated notice which I had to spend time & resources on to get corrected. It costed you nothing but put a dent in my bank account. Are you implying you have the power to restitute me for the losses I incurred?” jabbed Jain at the Taxman.

"I know you don’t but allow me to take this opportunity & suggest some things:

• I request you to overhaul your system and try making it easier for all of us.

• We don’t need excessively complex rules which render us incapable of understanding them.

• We don’t need inflated notices which make us have to do-over & pay exorbitant fees.

• We don’t need fear-mongering by officials who make us all feel like criminals." Jain suggested to the I-T watchdog.

Why do taxpayers get I-T notices?

Taxpayers may receive income tax notices from the IT department for several reasons, such as discrepancies in the filed ITR, nondisclosure of high-value transactions, or requests for further documentation.

However, with the recent surge in fraudulent income tax notices, it is crucial to verify the authenticity of the notice through the e-filing portal before responding.