Steno General Dictation No. 426

The fourth important thing is in relation to the understanding which developed nations have reached over the black money, information exchanges etc., that information has not been properly utilized while drafting this Bill and thus making it more accurate. In practice, people are at the mercy of Assessment Officers and at their capricious orders which are justified on the grounds of meeting the tax targets set by the Finance Ministry. But the most important question is, apart from these concerns the safeguards in the Bill, exempting those holding foreign accounts with a balance of Rs. 5 lakhs from criminal consequences is an amnesty to people who are offenders by exempting them from paying the tax. Therefore, my appeal is that if you want the opinion of this House, please do not record it as a club discussion and do not keep treating and categorizing these as money bills. I hope the Government will consider these points.