JOIN US Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s point man Hasmukh Adhia, who took charge as Revenue Secretary on Tuesday, promised to cleanse the Tax Department of bad elements and ensure full protection to whistle-blowers on malpractices.
Adhia said he will try to bring about transparency in tax administration through the use of technology and simplification of rules and procedures. He said that under him, the Tax Department will work towards identifying certain bad elements because of whom the department has got a bad name.
“We would like to also identify certain bad elements in the department because of whom it has got a bad name and we would like to sort of take care of those elements so that they do not any more spoil the business environment,” Adhia said.
While seeking suggestions on tax reforms, he said anyone can write to his personal email and the identity of the person will not be revealed. “I can assure everybody that even the whistle-blowers can feel free to write to me. Nobody else can open it. Only I open those emails,” he said.
Adhia, a 1981 batch IAS officer from the Gujarat cadre, has worked closely with Modi from 2004 to 2006 when he was chief minister. His assertion on cleaning up the Tax Department comes months after the CBI unearthed a major bribery scandal in the Income Tax Department’s investigation wing and arrested some officials.
In January this year, the CBI had arrested an IRS officer from Chennai on charges of taking Rs 8 lakh as bribe to prepare a favourable report for a chartered accounting firm. The CBI team also arrested the chartered accountant.
HASMUKH ADhIA: There are many, many good officers. But there are also certain bad
elements because of whom the department has got a bad name. We would like to
identify the bad elements and sort of take care of them so that they do not any more spoil the business environment.