By TIOL News Service

NEW DELHI, SEPT 04, 2017: THE Union Law Minister, Mr Ravi Shankar Prasad, has inaugurated the Surat bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal on Friday. Some of the MPs were also present on this occasion.

Surat happens to be the 28 th city to have a bench of the Tribunal. As on now it has over 3,000 appeals pending for disposal, which is more than double the average pendency per bench all over the country. The new bench will have jurisdiction in respect of the taxpayers assessed to tax by the Assessing Officers in Surat, Bharuch, Dang, Narmada, Navsari, Tapi, Valsad and Union Territories of Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Owing to unsatisfactory air connectivity, and time taking road journey between Surat and Ahmedabad, tax professionals were finding it very difficult to make day trips to Ahmedabad in connection with ITAT engagements. With the setting up of this bench, a long pending demand of tax professionals in South Gujarat is met.

The Union Minister exhorted the tax professionals to advise their clients to start paying tax with honesty, and remain within laxman rekha of tax planning and not venturing into tax shield through unfair means. This distinction between tax planning and tax evasion, the Minister urged, must be maintained and respected at all costs. He assured the gathering that, as demonstrated by his setting up of Surat bench and thus meeting 20 year old demand of tax professionals, within few months of matter brought to his notice earlier this year, he is deeply committed to serving the stakeholders in truly responsive manner as speedily as possible - which is true hallmark of Modi Government. He assured the audience that whenever a genuine demand of the stakeholders will be brought to his notice, they will not find him wanting in taking swift and appropriate action on the same.

Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, in co-operation with professional bodies and the chamber of commerce, organized a public function to mark this occasion. The event by preceded by, in the early morning session, a workshop on ‘ Effective Representation before the ITAT ” conducted by Mr Ajay Wadhva, President, ITAT Bar Association, New Delhi, and followed by, in the afternoon session, a Moot Court to familiarize the young tax professionals with the actual working of the actual proceedings in the ITAT's court rooms. The Moot Court was conducted by the sitting Members of the ITAT, lead by Mr Rajpal Yadav, Judicial Member, ITAT, Ahmedabad.