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Informist, Friday, Oct. 24, 2025

 

NEW DELHI – Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today urged the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs officers to close the pending Central Goods and Services Tax investigations expeditiously. Orders in such cases should be able to stand scrutiny, be well-reasoned, and evidence-based to cut down litigation time, she said. "Officials must be trained and encouraged to conduct quality investigations."  

 

Field officers must focus on wrongful practices like fake invoice rings and data manipulation, she said at the inauguration of the new CGST building in Ghaziabad. At the same time the officers must be mindful of trade facilitation and ensure that honest taxpayers are not harassed. "There is not an iron wall between you and the trader. There is thin air. You can actually understand where the difficulties are," Sitharaman said. "So try to solve it rather than muddying up the inquiry."

 

Sitharaman also instructed the CBIC to conclude disciplinary proceedings against the officers in a timebound manner within the prescribed timelines. "Prolonged proceedings, which I find very frequently to my irritation...unfairly affect the morale and reputation of the officers involved, particularly if they are innocent," she said.

 

"The swift conclusion of disciplinary proceedings reinforces accountability within the organisation. It also clears up the perception that public have that there is a level of indifference or protectionism which prevails among officers that weakens your moral authority and therefore it is important not to delay or procrastinate," she said.

 

She also urged the officers to map the recurring grievances in Central GST zones and find the root cause of such problems. "Please report them to the board that there are recurring issues. We may want some assistance at some other level. So these actually will enable many more systemic corrections," Sitharaman said.  End

 

Reported by Sagar Sen

Edited by Vandana Hingorani

 

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