On 13 March, The Supreme Court indefinitely extended the 31 March deadline for linking the Unique Identification Number to various services. However, despite that, the Income Tax website doesn’t allow the taxpayers to file their returns without an Aadhaar number, as reported by Hindustan Times on 21 March.
The apex court had directed the government that Aadhaar can’t be made mandatory until the final verdict is announced. But Income Tax rules maintain that a taxpayer has to file his/her return by quoting an Aadhaar number.
The Finance Act, 2017, made it mandatory to quote Aadhaar number while e-filing a return from 1 July 2017. Taxpayers are required to link their Aadhaar numbers to their Permanent Account Number (PAN) for this purpose.
We are seized of this issue and are looking into it.Spokesperson, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to Hindustan Times
Attorney General KK Venugopal had reportedly said that the Aadhaar data is safe because it remains securely behind a complex with walls that were five-feet wide and 13-feet wide. Critics have alleged that the UIDAI is incapable of maintaining the security of the data.
As the confusion and chaos over Aadhaar continues to brew, RJ Anant has an important message for the chairperson of UIDAI. Listen in and tell us your thoughts in the comments section.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)