Quietly showcasing disagreement to link PAN and Aadhaar or even get an Aadhaar card registered in their name, numerous taxpayers across the country have opted to file their tax returns either manually or via snailmails, rather than getting an Aadhaar registration done. Many had filed their returns even before June 30 when this rule of linking PAN with Aadhaar was not compulsory.
The current scenario is such that the e-filing portal of the I-T department does not accept returns without an Aadhaar number. I-T officials state that the reason for the rejection of applications might be due to errors made by the filer or some temporary technical glitch.
Filmmaker Rakesh Sharma feels Aadhaar requirement is a potential violation of privacy and considers it a tool for surveillance and data mining. He said that technically any taxpayer should be able to file returns online even if he/she does not have an Aadhaar.
Not having an Aadhaar or its application number is giving a hard time to taxpayers with income more than Rs 5 lakh as they have to file the I-T returns mandatorily online.
PAN-Aadhaar linkage - 75% cardholders still left
A majority of the people are yet to link their PAN cards with Aadhaar cards. Ministry of Finance tabled the data on July 17 that clarified that only 25 percent of PAN card holders had linked it with Aadhaar.
According to July 17 data, there were 32.41 crore PAN cards in the country. Of this, only 8.19 crore have linked with Aadhaar.
The I-T department has been informing the citizens via SMS that they should link PAN and Aadhaar to file their tax returns online.
Why the reluctance to get one?
A Bangalore-based consultant and his wife had filed the tax returns early in June and refused to apply for an Aadhaar card. She said that Aadhaar was earlier optional and they were worried about their personal data getting into wrong hands. Scared of identity theft, they were reluctant to share their biometric data.
A Chennai-based environmentalist, Nityanand Jayaraman, told Times of India that he has a problem with Aadhaar as he 'does not trust the government'.
A Mumbai-based media professional was also reported saying that he was debating whether to snailmail returns to Bangalore Central Processing Centre or wait till the Supreme Court passes the order on this issue.
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