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The Income Tax Settlement Commission (ITSC) was set up in pursuance of the recommendations of the Wanchoo Committee (1971) with effect from. 01.04.1976. The main objective for setting up of this Commission was to give a statutory basis for settlement of cases. It was established as a forum of mediation in place of litigation. The aim was to move the conflicting parties to a consensus rather than subjecting them to prolonged adversarial procedure inherent in regular administration of justice. The Commission has rendered yeoman service to this cause, which was recognised by the Justice Duggal Committee in its review of the functioning of Commission in 1996.
Recent amendments have once again vested the Commission with the onerous responsibility of handling disputes relating to search and seizure cases. As a result, the numbers of new cases have increased in recent times. The time limit for completion of settlement in respect of the new cases is fixed at eighteen months. It is desirable that technology be effectively harnessed to enable quick and time-bound settlement.
The newly developed website of ITSC is being launched with the objective of providing useful assistance to make general public aware about the existing settlement mechanism. The website provides detailed information about the procedure of the ITSC. Gradually, it will move to become a dynamic platform for interaction with the existing or intending applicants.
I would urge the users to continuously provide their valuable comments for frequent upgradation of the website to make it more effective and useful.
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