Election Commission issues notice to AAP following CBDT alert, asks them to explain donation discrepancies

The Election Commission (EC) on Tuesday issued a notice to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), asking them to explain donation discrepancies filed by the party, according to reports. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) in January had written to the EC that the donations filed by AAP with the income tax department were different than what was filed with the commission. [caption id=“attachment_4505833” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. PTI[/caption] According to The Indian Express, the tax body’s chief Sushil Chandra wrote in a letter to Chief Election Commissioner AK Joti on 3 January, informing him of the adverse assessment order on AAP’s finances for the financial year 2014-15 (assessment year 2015-16), saying that this violates the Representation of the People Act of 1951. The provision mandates all political parties to inform tax authorities of details of donations of more than Rs 20,000. Parties found violating this provision are barred from receiving any tax relief. Earlier in November, the Income Tax Department, in a notice to the AAP had claimed that the party had not disclosed income worth Rs 13 crore and had also not recorded the details of 462 donors who gave Rs 6.26 crore collectively, reported Scroll. AAP has also been accused of not reporting donations worth Rs 29.13 crore from donors contributing more than Rs 20,000 each in its report submitted to the EC in 2015, reported The Indian Express.