(BS)
Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday defended the government’s decision to make Aadhaar mandatory for filing income tax returns and applying for permanent account numbers (PAN), saying it would plug the loopholes of duplicate PANs used by some assessees to hide their identities.
In reply to the Finance Bill, 2017 in the Lok Sabha, Jaitley however remained silent on the Congress demand to extend BJP’s promise to waive off farm debts in Uttar Pradesh to the entire country as the banks are flush with funds after demonetisation. He, however ruled out imposing any tax on agriculture income, saying it is a state matter.
Jaitley said 98 per cent adults in the country have Aadhaar cards or have applied for the same and the technology should be used to cub tax evasion. The government finds it appropriate to use Aadhaar for anti-evasion, he said.
