Govt. has no plans to bring in long-term capital gains tax, clarifies Jaitley

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday dubbed reports stating that the government may bring in long-term capital gains tax in the upcoming budget as erroneous and said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not make any reference in this regard.

Jaitley said some section of the media misinterpreted the Prime Minister's address yesterday at the inauguration of the National Institute of Securities Markets (NISM) campus in Mumbai which fuelled speculations that this is an indirect reference to the fact that there could be long-term capital gains on security transactions.

"This interpretation is absolutely erroneous. The Prime Minister has made no such statement directly or indirectly. I was present at the function in which this speech was given. I wish to absolutely clarify that there is no occasion or opportunity to anybody to reach such a conclusion because this is not what the Prime Minister said nor is it the intention of the government as has been reported in some section of the media," he said.

The Finance Minister's justification came a day after Prime Minister Modi said tax collection from capital market participants is low and attributed it to illegal activities and fraud.

"Those who profit from financial markets must make a fair contribution to nation building through taxes," he said.

The Prime Minister's remark was interpreted as a signal that the government could bring in long-term capital gains tax in the upcoming budget.