Arvind Kejriwal seeks more time on income tax notice

Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal did not comply with the Income Tax Department notice asking him to pay over Rs9 lakh in dues, saying he was needed more time to decide on the issue as he was given "very little time".

"I am consulting my friends and will take a decision in a week or ten days. They had given me very little time," Kejriwal said as the deadline for paying the dues ended today.

According to I-T officials, they can initiate property attachment proceedings under service rules and subsequently, initiate criminal case against a person who defaults on dues.

The Office of the Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (CCIT) had on August five issued a notice to Kejriwal asking him to pay Rs9.27 lakh claiming that he had violated bond clauses under which he went on a study leave for two years. The social activist was asked him to deposit the money.

A fresh notice was issued to him a week ago asking him to pay by October 27. The dues had accumulated following the alleged violation of bond clauses under which Kejriwal, an Indian Revenue Service officer, had gone abroad on study leave for two years between November 2000 and 2002.

When the Delhi CCIT had written to him in 2007 and 2008 for clearance of his dues, Kejriwal had responded that they may be waived. Kejriwal and other Hazare team members had attacked the issuance of notice, terming it as an action of the government's "dirty tricks department" under instructions from political bosses.

The activist has claimed that he did not "violate" any bond provisions and he had resigned from the job after the stipulated three years of rejoining duty following his study leave.