The Hindu Business Line : Panel against setting up of national tax tribunal

THE Government's proposal to set up a national tax tribunal (NTT) has not found favour with a Parliamentary panel. The department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on personnel, public grievances and law and justice has expressed "reservations" regarding the setting up of NTT.

The main objective of the Government to set up the NTT was to speed up the disposal of cases relating to direct and indirect taxes. Apart from achieving this purpose, it was contended that the setting up of this tribunal would introduce an all-India perspective in the interpretations of tax laws, as it would have a nationwide jurisdiction.

"The Committee appreciates the earnestness of the Government to clear the backlog of tax related cases, which affects the nation's exchequer. But the Committee, during its deliberations, expressed doubts as to whether setting up of the NTT alone will reduce the pendency of tax related cases," said the Committee's report on the National Tax Tribunal Bill 2004.

The Committee felt that establishing the NTT would entail a huge expenditure in terms of salary and infrastructure. "Also, since the writ jurisdiction of the High Court would not be taken away, the party who is aggrieved by an order of the NTT can invoke this jurisdiction. This would result in delay in final disposal of cases, which would defeat the very purpose of the Bill," the Committee has said.

It has added that providing for additional Benches in High Courts that would be manned by judges specialising in tax matters would rectify the current problem of divergent decisions made by High Courts on identical questions of law. Such Benches may deal exclusively with tax cases.

The Parliamentary panel felt that the existing vacancies of High Court judges is another reason for the pendency of tax cases. Therefore, the filling up of these vacancies would ensure the quicker disposal of tax cases.

It has, however, added that if the Government decides to go ahead with the NTT, it should initially have four benches on an experimental basis, one each in the Northern, Southern, Western and Eastern zones. If the need arises, more benches may be set up.

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