Don't harass honest tax payers: PM

Honest tax payer should never be harassed, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.

Interacting with 167 probationers of the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) who met him, Modi urged them to have a sense of trust while working and laid stress on pursuing a humane approach.

The prime minister said that an overwhelming majority of people in the country were law abiding and wished to comply with laws in the interest of the nation.

"He said the honest taxpayer should not be harassed even as officers perform their duty of implementing the government's revenue policy," said an official statement.

Replying to a series of questions from the young officer-trainees, the prime minister said officers must feel that each and every citizen was a part of their family.

If this spirit prevailed, the officers will not feel exhausted.

In the course of the 45-minute session, Modi recalled several anecdotes from his life and political experience to explain the importance of civil servants pursuing "a sensitive and humane approach".