The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has submitted the Fifth SIT report before the Supreme Court, citing measures to curb the rampant flow of black money. One of the measures suggested was to ban all cash transactions above Rs 3,00,000 and enactment of an Act to declare such transactions as illegal and punishable under the law.
An extract of the report can be viewed on Department of Revenue website www.dor.gov.in.
The SIT has been working on stringent measures to break the circulation of black money ever since the central government has toughened its stance as a part of its 2014 poll manifesto. While opinions are fairly divided over the success of the government in tackling the black money issue, the government doesn’t seem to be relenting. The Supreme Court has been tightening the noose on the government on this issue, which so fervently claimed to bring back all the black money into India.
The SIT has strictly targeted cash, both in transactions and holding. Here are the recommendations for:
Cash transactions – The SIT believes that since a lot of unaccounted money is used in the form of cash, there is a need to put an upper limit on the cash transactions that can be processed legally. Therefore, it recommends a ceiling of Rs 3 lacs, beyond which transactions should be banned by law. It also calls for enactment of an Act to declare any non-conforming transactions illegal and punishable by law.
Cash holding – The SIT in its report also recommends that a limitation on cash holding be imposed in light of the huge cash recoveries by law enforcement agencies in enforcement actions such as raids. The limit suggested is Rs 15 lacs. If a person needs to hold more cash than the prescribed ceiling, he may do so by obtaining permission from the Commissioner of Income Tax of that area.
The SIT is open to receiving suggestions at sit_suggestions@nic.in.
