Amid the rush to fill ITR for the Financial Year 2022 -2023, the consumer body appeals to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Financial Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, and other concerned authorities to extend the last date of ITR filling. This appeal from consumer organisations, with just the last official working day (31st July 2023), can greatly relieve the people.
According to Vinod Tiwari, CPR President Barrister, various regions of the country are experiencing natural calamities like landslides, floods, and heavy rains. This is the scenario of the country for the last one month.
The situation is quite alarming in North India and the eastern and western parts of the country. He says that even the country’s financial capital, Mumbai, is experiencing unprecedented rain, which has become a major cause of hindrance in filing the ITR for many.
A.N. Desai, the tax and financial advisor of Mumbai, has also claimed that in a rush of ITR filing by lakhs, the portal is also experiencing a heavy rush. This is another reason why many people cannot file ITR for the FY 2022- 23.
He added that concerned authorities are aware of the situation as it has been brought to their notice, but the situation has remained unchanged since 3rd week of July. He is afraid that with one day left in filing ITR, i.e.Monday 31st July, many people might miss out on the date and have to pay penalty charges without their fault.
On the other hand, Abhay Mehta, ex-President of the influential Bombay Chartered Accounting Society, feels no need for an extension. He wants the citizens to become more aware and disciplined about filing ITR and should not be given any extension, as said by the government earlier.
According to sources, around 7.40 crore people filed their ITR last year, of which 5.16 crore had zero tax liability in the FY-2023. Maharashtra topped the list, with around 1.13 crore filing their ITR tops in the country, followed by Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh.