July 15, 2003	Tuesday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 14, 1424

LAHORE, July 14: The Lahore Tax Bar Association (LTBA) has urged the government to direct income tax (assessing) officers to apply the section 122 (amendment of assessment) of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001 discreetly only on future tax transactions.

Addressing a seminar organized by the bar here on Monday, LTBA president Shafqat Chohan and Shahbaz Butt Advocate stated through section 122 the “past and closed transactions had also been tried to reopen (by assessing officers), which was against the rights of citizens.”

They said section 122 should be applied on future returns alone and not on past and closed transactions. The also stressed the need for evaluation of requirements of information by senior income tax officials with clear orders for the consideration of a case fit for re-assessment. “Only after that an assessing officer should initiate independent proceedings. The assessing officer should be restricted categorically to amend or re-assess the income only to the extent of information and materials in his possession for the assumption of jurisdiction under section 122.”

It was also proposed that for the purpose of this section, the audit must be conducted once in a year for assumption jurisdiction under this section. The credibility of the audit should also be evaluated by senior officials and then the discrepancy, if any, should be considered after allowing due opportunity to the taxpayer/assessee to explain himself, they said.