Introduced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020, seeks replacement of the Taxation and other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020 which was promulgated on March 31 this year.

 

The House had to witness four adjournments as Union Minister of State Anurag Thakur passed remarks against the PM National Relief Fund set up by India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in 1948.

 

The Bill further seeks to amend the Income-tax Act, 1961, the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017; the Finance Act, 2019; the Direct Tax Vivad se Vishwas Act, 2020 and the Finance Act, 2020 which are administered by the Department of Revenue through two boards, namely, the Central Board of Direct Taxes and the Central Board of Indirect Taxes. Thus, no additional expenditure is contemplated on the enactment of the Bill.

 

While introducing the Bill, Sitharaman said it provides for extension of various time limits for completion or compliance of actions under the specified Acts and reduction in interest, waiver of penalty and prosecution for delay in payment of certain taxes or levies during the specified period.

 

The Finance Act, 2020 is also proposed to be amended to clarify regarding capping of surcharge at 15 per cent on dividend income of the Foreign Portfolio Investor.

 

The Bill also proposes to empower the Central government to remove any difficulty up to a period of two years and provide for repeal and savings of the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020.

 

The Minister clarified that the government is not snatching the rights of any state and that "we are not violating GST council".