AADHAAR RELATED ARTICLES: 7933 - Income Tax Returns: What to Expect From the Revised Forms

In 2009, I became extremely concerned with the concept of Unique Identity for various reasons. Connected with many like minded highly educated people who were all concerned.

On 18th May 2010, I started this Blog to capture anything and everything I came across on the topic. This blog with its million hits is a testament to my concerns about loss of privacy and fear of the ID being misused and possible Criminal activities it could lead to.

In 2017 the Supreme Court of India gave its verdict after one of the longest hearings on any issue. I did my bit and appealed to the Supreme Court Judges too through an On Line Petition.

In 2019 the Aadhaar Legislation has been revised and passed by the two houses of the Parliament of India making it Legal. I am no Legal Eagle so my Opinion carries no weight except with people opposed to the very concept.

In 2019, this Blog now just captures on a Daily Basis list of Articles Published on anything to do with Aadhaar as obtained from Daily Google Searches and nothing more. Cannot burn the midnight candle any longer.

"In Matters of Conscience, the Law of Majority has no place"- Mahatma Gandhi

Ram Krishnaswamy

Sydney, Australia.

Aadhaar

The UIDAI has taken two successive governments in India and the entire world for a ride. It identifies nothing. It is not unique. The entire UID data has never been verified and audited. The UID cannot be used for governance, financial databases or anything. It’s use is the biggest threat to national security since independence. – Anupam Saraph 2018

When I opposed Aadhaar in 2010 , I was called a BJP stooge. In 2016 I am still opposing Aadhaar for the same reasons and I am told I am a Congress die hard. No one wants to see why I oppose Aadhaar as it is too difficult. Plus Aadhaar is FREE so why not get one ? Ram Krishnaswamy

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.-Mahatma Gandhi

In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place.Mahatma Gandhi

“The invasion of privacy is of no consequence because privacy is not a fundamental right and has no meaning under Article 21. The right to privacy is not a guaranteed under the constitution, because privacy is not a fundamental right.” Article 21 of the Indian constitution refers to the right to life and liberty -Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi

“There is merit in the complaints. You are unwittingly allowing snooping, harassment and commercial exploitation. The information about an individual obtained by the UIDAI while issuing an Aadhaar card shall not be used for any other purpose, save as above, except as may be directed by a court for the purpose of criminal investigation.”-A three judge bench headed by Justice J Chelameswar said in an interim order.

Legal scholar Usha Ramanathan describes UID as an inverse of sunshine laws like the Right to Information. While the RTI makes the state transparent to the citizen, the UID does the inverse: it makes the citizen transparent to the state, she says.

Good idea gone bad
I have written earlier that UID/Aadhaar was a poorly designed, unreliable and expensive solution to the really good idea of providing national identification for over a billion Indians. My petition contends that UID in its current form violates the right to privacy of a citizen, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. This is because sensitive biometric and demographic information of citizens are with enrolment agencies, registrars and sub-registrars who have no legal liability for any misuse of this data. This petition has opened up the larger discussion on privacy rights for Indians. The current Article 21 interpretation by the Supreme Court was done decades ago, before the advent of internet and today’s technology and all the new privacy challenges that have arisen as a consequence.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP Rajya Sabha

“What is Aadhaar? There is enormous confusion. That Aadhaar will identify people who are entitled for subsidy. No. Aadhaar doesn’t determine who is eligible and who isn’t,” Jairam Ramesh

But Aadhaar has been mythologised during the previous government by its creators into some technology super force that will transform governance in a miraculous manner. I even read an article recently that compared Aadhaar to some revolution and quoted a 1930s historian, Will Durant.Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Rajya Sabha MP

“I know you will say that it is not mandatory. But, it is compulsorily mandatorily voluntary,” Jairam Ramesh, Rajya Saba April 2017.

August 24, 2017: The nine-judge Constitution Bench rules that right to privacy is “intrinsic to life and liberty”and is inherently protected under the various fundamental freedoms enshrined under Part III of the Indian Constitution

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the World; indeed it's the only thing that ever has"

“Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.” -Edward Snowden

In the Supreme Court, Meenakshi Arora, one of the senior counsel in the case, compared it to living under a general, perpetual, nation-wide criminal warrant.

Had never thought of it that way, but living in the Aadhaar universe is like living in a prison. All of us are treated like criminals with barely any rights or recourse and gatekeepers have absolute power on you and your life.

Announcing the launch of the # BreakAadhaarChainscampaign, culminating with events in multiple cities on 12th Jan. This is the last opportunity to make your voice heard before the Supreme Court hearings start on 17th Jan 2018. In collaboration with @no2uidand@rozi_roti.

UIDAI's security seems to be founded on four time tested pillars of security idiocy

1) Denial

2) Issue fiats and point finger

3) Shoot messenger

4) Bury head in sand.

God Save India

Saturday, May 9, 2015

7933 - Income Tax Returns: What to Expect From the Revised Forms - NDTV

Income Tax Returns: What to Expect From the Revised Forms

Cleartax.in | Updated On: May 08, 2015 21:23 (IST)

The new Income Tax Return (ITR) forms which the tax department released have invited much clamor and discussion. While the tax department is working on a refreshed form or possibly a clarification on the forms it released, here's a quick check on what to expect.

An abysmally low percentage of Indians file their income tax returns. Successive governments have endeavored to up this number. The Saral or simple tax form, introduced in 2009, is intended at making tax filing simple and understandable for the lay person. The goal of the department is to increase compliance such that more number of people file their tax returns; as well as focus on generating more revenue from the direct taxes.

Of the three ITR forms (ITR-1, ITR-2 and ITR-4S) which were announced, the new addition that asks for bank account information has attracted significant debate. Several tax payers are unsure why the government wants to have access to their bank details. The requirement of disclosure of joint account information has led to further anxiety. Take a case where a non working spouse is a joint holder in a bank account but does not make significant contributions to it. In such a case, there may appear to be significant disparity in the bank balance and the earnings of the joint account holder who has been added only for convenience. While one may expect the department will continue to seek bank details in the revised forms, possibly a clarification for the disclosure for the beneficiary is in order.

It's getting easier and cheaper for most tax payers to indulge themselves in a foreign jaunt. Visits to nearby Asian and gulf countries have become a norm. The occasional holiday traveler is dazed with the need for this disclosure. There has been information that the department may only seek disclosure where multiple trips have been undertaken, it's worthwhile to mention that a trip within the country from the north to the south may sometimes turn out to be more expensive.

Usually a foreign trip involves a few significant purchases; the ticket, cost of stay and the currency spent abroad. The government has approached the undisclosed money issue from several angles and this is one aspect of that - so the tax department is expected to keep this disclosure and look at tweaking it to for those who make several trips and spend large amounts on foreign travel. At the same time it may be worthwhile for the government to look at the sources of foreign currency purchases made by the frequent travelers.

Of the many changes, a significant one is the electronic verification of ITR for those who hold an Aadhaar Card. This is a very welcome change that will make the e-filing process completely electronic. Having access to a printing facility and sending the ITR-V via speed post led to failure in submission for several tax payers. While the debate on other changes took centre stage, this change will make life simple for those who hold an aadhaar card. This is set to make e-filing process smooth as well as bring the focus on the universal identity that the government hopes to have large scale enrollment for.

The Finance minister has assured the forms shall be 'saral' in their true spirit.

(Preeti Khurana is a chartered accountant and chief editor at www.cleartax.in)

Disclaimer: All information in this article has been provided by Cleartax.in and NDTV Profit is not responsible for the accuracy and completeness of the same.

Story first published on: May 08, 2015 17:46 (IST)