FM Nirmala Sitharaman tells I-T Dept to fast-track disputes, drop small appeals

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday urged the Income Tax Department to speed up the disposal of disputed tax demands and litigation backlog, and to withdraw departmental appeals falling below the newly revised monetary thresholds within three months.

While she lauded the CBDT’s efforts in redrafting the new Income Tax Bill, she stressed that good policies alone are not enough – timely execution and grievance redressal must follow. This includes faster processing of refunds and prompt resolution of taxpayer complaints.

“Good policies alone are not enough – what matters is timely execution,” Sitharaman said, addressing officers on the 166th Income Tax Day.

The budget this year revised the monetary thresholds for filing departmental appeals upwards.

For cases before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), the threshold was increased from Rs 50 lakh to Rs 60 lakh; for High Courts, from Rs 1 crore to Rs 2 crore; and for the Supreme Court, from Rs 2 crore to Rs 5 crore.

As on April 1, around 5.77 lakh appeals were pending. The department aims to dispose of over 2.25 lakh cases in FY26, involving ?10 lakh crore in disputed tax demands.

Sitharaman emphasized leveraging technology to enhance taxpayer experience, improve service delivery, and reduce technical glitches.

She cautioned that poorly executed reforms could damage taxpayer trust and hurt public perception:

“While the achievements of the last decade are laudable, public perception will be shaped more by the challenges people continue to face than by past progress,” she said.

She also directed the board to undertake region-wise performance reviews to boost departmental efficiency.

Praising the CBDT’s work on the new tax bill, she noted that over 60,000 man-hours were spent condensing a five-lakh-word law to nearly half, without compromising legal clarity.

“Reducing a five-lakh-word legislation to nearly half while retaining legal soundness is no small achievement,” she said, calling the effort “spectacular.”