Aadhaar card is the source to provide identity verification across the country for the proof of resident. PAN card contains all the tax-related information about the company or person and issued by the Department of Income Tax. Both the documents are coming to bring the transparency in the system and a mechanism to control the duplicity for the purpose to commit fraud.
To know about why the government wants citizen to link their Aadhaar with the PAN card. Firstly we discussed the purpose of the government to take such a step to find out the fake PAN which has been used for the purpose to conceal the income to pay less Tax.
It helps to curb the circulation of black money in the market as linking the Aadhaar with the PAN card automatically link an individual’s Aadhaar with his account that helps income tax department to trace the transaction of each individual and the taxpaying by them.
For the purpose to open an account, the citizen must provide PAN card that helps them to file the Income-tax return. If the individual has multiple accounts to save his tax then linking the Aadhaar with PAN card club all the accounts of the individual into one and the transaction was easily traced by the Income-tax department. The High Court of Gujarat declared that PAN is not to be inoperative due to non-linking with Aadhaar until the Act which governs Aadhaar attains the finality.
Brief facts:
The appellant took the appeal that he has prima facie case Rojer Mathew v. South Indian Bank Ltd. And others for not linking his Aadhaar with his Permanent account number as he is unable to file the IT return under section 139AA of the Income-tax Act as his PAN gets inoperative if not linked with Aadhaar.
The case which the appellant has referred pending before the Supreme Court questioning the constitutional legality of the Aadhaar act as to get enroll in Aadhaar one need to reveals all his biometrics and other information against the article 21 of the Indian Constitution which also includes right to privacy. It was submitted in the application that by the virtue of section 139AA of the Act his PAN gets inoperative led unable to operate his account. It was an urge that unless the Supreme Court decides the validity of the Aadhaar Act, the appellant will not be deprived of using PAN non-linking with Aadhaar for all his financial transaction.
Key features:
- Any PAN non-linked with Aadhaar becomes inoperative and its consequence brings the higher rate of tax.
- The constitutional validity of the Aadhaar act gets challenged as to enroll in Aadhaar we need to provide biometrics and other information which violates the Article 21 of the Indian constitution.
- The case was already pending in the apex court related to the constitutional validity of the Aadhaar act until the case will be decided, the appellant Permanent account number will not become inoperative due to non-linking with the Aadhaar.
Order:
The SC ordered that the PAN of the appellant shall not be declared inoperative and the applicant will not be deprived of any proceeding on the ground that the Permanent account number is not linked with Aadhaar number.
The case of Rojer Mathew v. South Indian Bank Ltd. was referred and states that non-linking of Aadhaar will not cause any loss to the prosecution but linking will cause irreparable injury to the appellant as his biometric and other information was required to enrol in Aadhaar. The validity of the Aadhaar act has not attained the finality therefore, the appellant may abide the provision of section 139AA of the Income-tax Act in order not to provide the biometric and other information which leads to loss of privacy of the appellant. The interim relief has provided to the appellant to protect his rights and directing that his PAN shall not be declared inoperative.
Edited by Vartika Gajendra Singh
Approved & Published – Sakshi Raje
