Finally, the
Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh made his first move to reverse the
policy enunciated by his predecessor in the finance ministry, Pranab Mukherjee, with regard to General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR).
The PM, as a
prelude, set up a 4-member expert panel which will submit its report by
September 30. The GAAR introduced by
Pranab Mukherjee in his 2012 Budget had made FIIs and investors to flee India.
This single
provision brought down the markets and caused panic. Investors world over and India watchers were waiting for some relief on this account. Finally, the PMO made
the first formal announcement putting the uncertainty at rest. The panel will
be headed by tax expert Parthasarathi Shome.
N.
Rangachary, former IRDA chairman; Sunil Gupta, joint secretary, tax
policy and legislation, department of revenue, and NIPFP professor Ajay
Shah will be the other members of the committee, said a release from the Prime
Minister's Office.
The committee will have time till end-July to receive comments from stakeholders and the general public, and will have until August 31 to rework the guidelines based on these recommendations and submit a second draft, the release said.
The committee will have time till end-July to receive comments from stakeholders and the general public, and will have until August 31 to rework the guidelines based on these recommendations and submit a second draft, the release said.
"While these steps (the draft guidelines released last month) are good in
themselves, a need was felt for far more widespread consultations. There is a
need to have greater clarity on many other fronts. With this in view, the Prime
Minister has constituted this expert committee which will bring transparency
and a high degree of technical expertise to the consultation process," the
release added.
