EC sees red as Govt celebrates tax collection

The Finance Ministry is about get a rap on its knuckles from the Election Commission for announcing buoyancy in the corporate tax collection beyond budget estimation that will result in higher tax-GDP ratio at 9.1 pc and lower fiscal deficit and giving the government of the day credit for it.

The EC has taken exception — and this time it is suo motu — that the ministry totally ignored the fact that the country is in the midst of an election before painting a rosy picture of the revenue collection. The EC’s golden rule the model-code-of-conduct was violated. ‘‘The EC will be sending a letter to the ministry’’ officials in the EC said. The EC is rather upset that the ministry neither thought it fit to take a clearance before announcing the revenue as an achievement of the government’s policy in the midst of the polls nor bothered to camouflage it as a routine information peddling. Sources in the EC said that it is being seen as a serious violation of the election rules and the model code of conduct. The announcements of the revenue figures, the EC feels, could have waited till the polling was over on May 10.

Revenue Secretary Vineeta Rai not only addressed a press conference on Tuesday along with chief economic adviser Ashok Lahiri and Finance secretary D.C. Gupta, but also gave credit to the government.