National talent pool of officers on anvil for better litigation management in I-T Dept

The CBDT will form a national talent pool of Income Tax Department officials for clinching success in "high stake" cases and reducing litigation being fought by the department in various forums in the country, up to the Supreme Court.

The proposal has been mooted by the policy-making body for the department, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), in the latest issued central action plan (CAP) document for the year 2019-20.

The CAP acts as the guiding light document for the Income Tax Department and is unveiled by the CBDT annually.

The legal directorate of the department, headquartered in Delhi, shall "form a 'national talent pool' with selected officers having super specialisation in any specific trade, sector, section of the I-T Act for representation of high stake cases at different levels of appeal and also for rendering all possible assistance and briefing of the standing counsels, Additional Solicitor Generals in such cases. Their contribution will also be recognised at the national level," the CAP document, accessed by PTI, said.

Similar teams will also be created in every region of the department and they will assist the department in cases at multiple legal forums like the CIT (Appeal), Income Tax Appellate Tribunal and high courts, it said.

The officers of the talent pool shall also act as a 'think tank' to contribute articles on the themes of their specialisation for publication in the judicial web portal of the department as well as in national or international journals, the document said.

The regional chiefs of the department have also been asked to conduct mock courtrooms every quarter for officers of the 'talent pool' and for further enhancement of their skills.

The board feels the department has to ensure a better litigation management process so that it can emerge as an "efficient and effective tax administration" that can improve voluntary tax compliance in the country.

The document directs that such officers should be encouraged and appreciated by issuing testimonials in their favour, once the cases they are working upon are upheld at the high court or the Supreme Court-level.

The CAP states that the I-T Department has over 3.21 lakh cases pending as on April 1, 2019, at the first appellate mechanism of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeal) forum. The demand locked in these cases is Rs 5.71 lakh crore.

"There are a large number of cases where appeals for various assessment years, involving similar issues, are pending for several years at different levels in the ITAT, high court and the Supreme Court. This backlog of litigation not only blocks collectible revenues (total demand stayed by courts/ITAT as on March, 2019 is Rs 1,15,837 crore), but also generates further litigation due to similar issues arising in subsequent assessments," the document said.

Thus, it said, even though there is a reduction in the number of appeals being filed by the department, the number of disputes pending in courts and ITAT has been increasing over the years.