The Congress party has received a fresh notice of Rs 1,700 crore from the Income Tax department for discrepancies in tax returns for previous years. The fresh notice was received earlier this week.
According to sources, the tax penalties along with interest relate to discrepancies in tax returns for the years 2017-18 to 2020-21.
This comes as a blow to the cash-strapped party ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. The IT Department had with in February withdrawn Rs 135 crore from its bank accounts for previous dues. It had also slapped a penalty totalling Rs 523.87 crore covering the period 2014-2021 for "unaccounted transactions".
The Congress is already facing a funds crunch after Income Tax authorities imposed a penalty of Rs 210 crore and froze its funds. The party has not received any relief from the High Court in the case and is likely to move to the Supreme Court.
On Thursday, the Delhi High Court rejected a plea by the party contesting an order from the Income Tax Department regarding reassessment proceedings between 2014 and 2017.
The party has accused the BJP of squeezing it financially and of using tax authorities against it ahead of Lok Sabha elections beginning April 19.
