The Income Tax Department on Monday assured the Supreme Court that it will not take any coercive steps to recover approximately Rs 3500 crore income tax dues from the Indian National Congress (INC) till the ongoing general elections are over.

“Till the matter is heard, we will not take recovery/coercive steps as elections are going on,” Solicitor General Tushar Mehta assured a bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Augustine George Masih.

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The bench took on record the undertaking given by Solicitor General Mehta who appeared for the Income Tax Department.

“The issues which arise in these appeals are yet to be adjudicated upon, but having regard to the situation now, the (Income Tax) department does not wish to precipitate the matter in as much as no coercive steps will be taken with regard to (the tax demand of) Rs 3,500 crore approximately till the next date of hearing. List the matter in the second week of July” , the bench said in its order recording the undertaking.

Stating that the IT department does not want to create problems for any party during elections, Mehta said the issue in the present appeal was not related to the recent tax notices issued to the Congress, yet, considering the upcoming elections, the IT department will not take any coercive steps.

The bench also recorded in its order Solicitor General’s submission that the Rs 3500 crore demand is not strictly relatable to the controversy in these appeals.

Rs 3500 crore also includes the levy of notices worth about Rs 1,700 crore that were issued last week.

The top court was hearing a 2018 appeal by the Congress against a 2016 judgment of the Delhi High Court. In the appeal, the party moved an interim application seeking stay of the recent demand notices issued by the IT department in March.

The Delhi High Court on March 28 rejected the Congress’ plea challenging the initiation of tax reassessment proceedings against it for assessment years 2017 to 2021 by tax authorities.

The High Court had said the pleas were dismissed in terms of its earlier decision refusing to interfere with the opening of reassessment for another period.

On March 22, the High Court had rejected the Congress’ plea challenging initiation of reassessment proceedings pertaining to assessment years 2014-15 to 2016-17.