What Nirmalaji told India's taxmen

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday asked tax officers to use simple language in income tax communications so that notices do not instil fear in the minds of taxpayers.

Advising the income tax officers not to take "disproportionate" action and use enforcement measures only, as the last resort, Sitharaman said tax officers should use "power judiciously".

"Taxpayers must not be subject to unnecessary harassment," she said, adding that tax authorities should mention the reason for sending tax notice and present their side of the story in a "crystal clear" way.

"It would be better if the tax-related communication is simpler in language, becomes devoid of technical words and is not convoluted so that an average taxpayer understands what he/she needs to do or what the notice is about," Sitharaman said at the 165th Income Tax Day celebration in New Delhi.

Stating that tax authorities are not for instilling fear in the minds of people, Sitharaman said the department should collect what is legitimately due and should do that in a "fair and friendly manner" and encourage voluntary compliance.

"You're rightly vested with adequate powers to perform your duties.

"But you should be conscious of using those powers judiciously, and it must not come at the cost of fairness and integrity," Sitharaman said.

Sitharaman also said there was room for improvement in issuing refunds faster.

Asking taxmen to avoid "ham-handed ways" in dealing with taxpayers, the minister said tax officers must "trust the assessees".

The tax department should word their advertisements in a way so that people file income tax returns voluntarily and not after getting frightened, she added.

The minister also underlined that when she says that the tax department should be more friendly and transparent, it does not mean that the tax officers were unfair all these years.

"Can we explore issuing simple and easy-to-understand notices?

"Explain the reason behind why the action was taken, and why the notice was being sent," Sitharaman said.

Stating that she would stand with the tax department, the minister said that tax officers should continue to perform their sovereign duties.