Strict action will be initiated against political parties who are getting tax exemption: Govt.

New Delhi [India], Dec. 21 (ANI): With the Election Commission writing to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) informing it about its decision to delist 200-odd political parties which exist only on paper, Minister of State for Law and IT P.P. Choudhary on Wednesday said strict action will be initiated against the political parties, who are getting tax exemption as it is a fraud on the Constitution. Choudhary told ANI that the Government will examine the Election Commission recommendation to delist political parties which exist only on paper. "Prime Minister Modi ji always wanted a transparent government and a transparent government process. That there should not be any use of black money in the election process. If found that political parties are getting tax exemption in various ways that this is a fraud on the constitution and fraud on the institution. I believe that if someone is found doing this then strict action will be taken against them," he added. The Election Commission will write to the Central Board of Direct Taxes ( CBDT) informing it about the decision to delist 200-odd political parties, which exist only on paper. Sources said the Election Commission suspects that most of these political parties could be money-laundering operations. The Commission has the power to register a political party, but there is no guideline to allow it to de-register any party that has been recognised. The Election Commission has written to several governments in the past, requesting for power to deregister "non-serious" political parties. However, nothing has been done in this regard yet. Under existing law, various political parties are expected to file their Income-Tax returns containing details of donors, who have made contributions above Rs. 20,000. Most political parties, however, declare most of their funds as having come from unnamed donors donating less than Rs. 20,000 each. The political parties by doing so get away without having to name the source of their donations. (ANI)