No inconsistency in data provided by govt on number of Taxpayers added after Demonetization: Fin Min

New Delhi, Aug 19 (KNN) The Ministry of Finance has clarified that there is no inconsistency in the data provided by the Government with regards to number of taxpayers added after Demonetization.

The Ministry said various news reports/articles have appeared in the media regarding inconsistency in the estimates of the number of taxpayers added after demonetization.

The Prime Minister, in his Independence Day speech, had said that additional 56 lakh people filed Personal Income Tax Returns from 1st April to 5th August, 2017. Last year for the same period, the figure was 22 lakh. 

The Economic Survey Vol.2 released on August 12, 2017 mentions that 5.4 lakh new taxpayers were added post demonetization.

On May 17, 2017, the Finance Minister stated that 91 lakh taxpayers have been added to the tax net as a result of action taken by the Income Tax Department.

In reply to a question in Rajya Sabha on August 1, 2017, it was stated that 33 lakh new taxpayers have been added to the tax net post demonetization.

From the 1st of April to 5th August, 2017, 2.79 crore returns have been filed by Individual taxpayers as against 2.23 crore returns filed during corresponding period of last year. The number is expected to further rise significantly as many more taxpayers are still to file their returns.