With the aim of streamlining tax law vocabulary in India, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced the Income Tax Bill 2025 in the Lok Sabha. The act seek to simplify tax returns and payment processing for tax payers.
Opposition Stages Walkout
As Sitharaman introduced the bill amid chaos in Parliament, several Opposition MPs walked out in protest. However, the total number of MPs who left the session remains unclear.
Opposition’s criticism
Kerala’s Kollam MP, NK Premachandran, raised concerns over the bill containing more sections than the 1961 Income Tax Act. Addressing his objection, Sitharaman clarified, “He should understand where the law is today and where it is being reduced.”
She further explained, “The Income Tax Act was originally enacted in 1961 and came into effect in 1962. At that time, they had only 298 sections…But as time went by…many more sections were added. As it stands today, there are 819 sections. From that 819, we’re bringing it down to 536. So he should look at what it is today.”
Sitharaman also noted that the 1961 Act has undergone 4,000 amendments over time, which are now being reviewed.
When TMC MP Professor Sougata Ray objected that the changes in the new tax bill were merely “mechanical”, Sitharaman countered, “They’re not mechanical changes. Substantial changes are being made. Number of words have come down by half. Sections and chapters have come down. It is in plain simple English and plain simple Hindi.”
Bill to be Reviewed by House Committee
The finance minister proposed that the bill be sent to a newly-formed Select House Committee for further review. “The terms and conditions regarding the committee will be decided by [Speaker Om Birla],” she stated.
She further added that the committee is expected to submit its report “on the first day of the next session.”
