Amidst widespread criticism, the government has retracted its earlier decision to allow whitening of black money for the next three years, and instead declared that this scope would now be available only for the next year.
Finance Minister AMA Muhith in his closing speech on the finance bill declared the government’s revised decisions in the parliament yesterday.
He said the source of the money would have to be disclosed, adding that the scope for whitening money would remain valid from July 2009 to June 2010 in new industries and infrastructures as well as in the share market.
If investment is made in the share market, it cannot be withdrawn within two years, Muhith said.
A person would get the scope for buying flats using whitened money during this period and he/she would not get the scope again in his/her lifetime, the minister said.
He also announced tax cut on vehicles, mobile phone sets, utensils, medicines and bidi. However, he proposed more increase of tax on cigarettes.
The government has also decided to drop the 3 percent customs duty on the import of newsprint as was declared in the budget speech.
Earlier, in the proposed budget for 2009-10 the government allowed legalising of black money for the next three years by paying 10 percent tax on the disclosed amount, sparking huge criticism across the country.
The finance minister had also said during a general discussion on the proposed budget in parliament that holders of black money would enjoy the ‘money legalising scope’ without any questions about their source of income.
Meanwhile yesterday, Muhith also announced that tax on mobile phone handsets would be reduced to 12 per cent from the proposed 25 per cent in the budget. He also proposed waiver of 5 per cent regulatory duty on the mobile sets.
Value Added Tax (VAT) on herbal, Unani medicine, and manpower recruitment agencies would also be withdrawn, the minister said.
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