AGRA: A 40-year-old e-rickshaw driver in Mathura has received a notice from the income tax department directing him to pay tax of Rs 3.47 crore for his annual turnover of Rs 43.44 crore in 2018-19 financial year. Pratap Singh lodged a police complaint on Sunday but no FIR has not been registered so far.
Superintendent of police (SP), city, MP Singh told TOI that during investigation, police found a Delhi-based firm is registered against Pratap Singh's PAN number. Further investigation is on and an FIR will be registered on the basis of evidence gathered during investigation, the SP said.
In his police complaint, Pratap Singh stated that someone might have stolen his identity as he doesn’t have even a fraction of such a huge turnover. “I have been driving an e-rickshaw for the past four years and earn Rs 400-500 a day, which is barely sufficient to feed five family members, including our three children. I can’t even think of such a huge amount in my wildest of dreams,” said a shocked Singh to TOI.
Singh said he had received a call from the income tax department on October 19 asking him to appear in their office. “When I reached there, they served me the tax notice of Rs 3.47 crore,” he stated in the complaint.
When he told the I-T department officials about his work profile, they advised him to lodge a police complaint into the matter, as someone had taken a GST number on his name to run a business. The annual turnover of the business was Rs 43.44 crore in 2018-19, and on the basis of it, the tax amount of Rs 3.47 crore was initiated against the given PAN number, which was registered in Pratap Singh’s name.
Pratap, a resident of Bakalpur village, said he needed a PAN card for banking purposes and hence went to a Jan Suvidha Kendra in March 2018 to get a PAN card made. He was told that he would get the card after a month. When he did not receive it, he again contacted the centre. Later, he received a coloured photocopy of the PAN card from a man named Sanjay Singh. “I could not differentiate between the actual PAN card and the photocopy because I am illiterate,” Pratap stated in his complaint.
According to the assessment order issued by the income tax department, “Information was received on INSIGHT portal under high risk no-filer case wherein it has been shown that the assessee reported a turnover of Rs 43.44 crore in GSTR-1.
However, the assessed tax was not filed in his ITR within the due date of filing of ITR.” Accordingly, a notice under section 142 (1), dated February 25, 2020, requiring filing the ITR for the assessment year 2019-20 was issued and served on the assessee. Therefore, scrutiny proceedings under section 144 of the Income tax Act were initiated against assessee.
