Note ban impact: Over 7 lakh assessees respond to I-T dept query; `non-statutory` letters to be issued in case of no reply

The I-T Department on Friday said that more than 7 lakh assessees, out of 18 lakh who were sent SMS/emails for making suspicious deposits post demonetisation, have submitted their response.

New Delhi: More than 7 lakh assessees, out of 18 lakh who were sent SMS/emails for making suspicious deposits post demonetisation, have submitted their response to the I-T department.

A PTI report quoting official sources said that more than 99 percent of 7 lakh respondents accepted data on deposit are correct.

Non-statutory letters will be sent to those who did not respond to SMS, e-mail queries sent by I-T department on deposits made.

As many as Rs 4.5 lakh crore worth of deposits have been made by these 18 lakh people during the 50-day demonetisation period.

Under Operation Clean Money launched on January 31, the department had sent SMS/email queries to 18 lakh assessees for making suspicious cash deposits of over Rs 5 lakh and gave them 10 days time to reply on the efiling portal.

Last week the tax department had extended the last date for response till February 15 and issued a detailed FAQ to assist taxpayers in submitting response.