In a major blow to the Congress ahead of Lok Sabha elections, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal on March 8 dismissed the party's plea seeking a stay on the I-T department's action against its bank accounts in connection with a dispute over a tax demand of Rs 210 crore.
Senior Advocate Vivek Tankha, who appeared for the Congress, has requested to keep the order in abeyance for 10 days so that they can approach the High Court.
But, the tribunal declined the appeal saying that "we have no such provision or prayer before us".
On February 16, the Congress had announced that its bank accounts had been frozen by the I-T department.
Days later, Congress leader Ajay Maken alleged that the department withdrew Rs 65 crore from three of the party's accounts even though a petition against the claim was being heard by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal.
He said that the funds were raised through grassroots efforts, including crowd funding and membership drives by the Indian Youth Congress (IYC) and National Students’ Union of India (NSUI).
“This situation raises a crucial question about the state of democracy. Is it under threat?” Maken said, adding, “Our hope now lies with the judiciary.”
“The I-T department had written to various banks to withdraw a sum of Rs 65 crore from different bank accounts of the Congress and IYC in view of the demand raised by the I-T authorities earlier, despite the appellate authorities hearing the case,” Maken said.
Earlier, Maken in a post on X said that concerns rise over the actions of Central Government agencies, potentially threatening the multi-party system in India. “If unchecked, democracy in India will be over."
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