Rise I-T exemption limit to Rs 5 lakh: PMK to Centre

CHENNAI: With just two days to go for the Union Budget, PMK founder S. Ramadoss on Sunday demanded that the Union Government give a “major relief” to salaried class by increasing the Income-Tax exemption limit to Rs 5 lakh.

In a statement, Mr Ramadoss said there were high expectations in people about the Union Budget 2017, which will be presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitely on February 1. “Apart from increasing the limit, the tax rate should be reduced he said in a statement. He said the tax rate should be capped at 10 per cent for income upto Rs 10 lakh, 20 per cent for income between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 20 lakh and 30 per cent beyond that threshold,” Mr Ramadoss said.

The NDA Government had increased the I-T exemption limit from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh in 2014 immediately after it stormed to power after 10 years and did not effect any changes in the budgets presented in 2015 and 2016. There was speculation in December that I-T exemption limit will be increased to Rs 4 lakh during the Union Budget, but the government rejected the reports.

With demonetisation bringing in lots of unaccounted cash into the banking system, there are expectations that the I-T exemption limit will be increased to '5 lakh, a promise that was made by the BJP in its 2014 General election manifesto.

The Union budget has raised expectations among public since the general and railway budgets were being presented together after 92 years, Mr Ramadoss said and demanded full tax exemption for senior citizens. “The import duty on gold should be either fully waived or it must be cut down to five per cent,” he said.