Jammu & Kashmir BJP President and Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament, Sat Sharma CA, forcefully raised two major public-interest issues concerning the people of Jammu & Kashmir during the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha, highlighting the urgent need for housing security for the urban poor and relief from genuine Income Tax hardships.
Strongly advocating for the urban homeless and economically weaker sections of Jammu & Kashmir, Sat Sharma sought the attention of the House towards the alarming number of poor and homeless families in the Union Territory. Raising the matter through the Chair, he emphasized the need for the construction of safe and permanent (pucca) houses for the needy, particularly in urban areas.
Sat Sharma pointed out that despite the magnitude of the problem, only two shelter homes are presently operational in Jammu & Kashmir, which is grossly inadequate to meet the requirements of the homeless population. He urged the Union Government to substantially increase the number of shelters and strengthen housing infrastructure for the vulnerable sections.
Sharing official figures, he informed the House that 19,375 houses have been constructed in J&K so far, but stressed that the pace of construction must be expedited to ensure timely relief to the poor, homeless, and landless families. He called upon the concerned Union Minister to provide detailed information on housing schemes and to fast-track the implementation process to ensure no deserving family is left without a roof over their head.
In addition to housing concerns, Sat Sharma also raised an important Income Tax–related issue, highlighting the difficulties faced by taxpayers due to recent amendments in the Income-tax Act. He drew attention to the changes introduced through the Finance (No. 2) Act, 2024, which impose a six-year time limit for filing TDS correction statements, effective from April 1, 2025.
Sat Sharma explained that the amendment has resulted in severe hardship for deductors and deductees, particularly for financial years prior to 2018–19, as the correction window for these years has effectively closed after March 31, 2025. Due to this restriction, genuine errors such as incorrect PAN details or challan mismatches can no longer be rectified, leading to non-credit of TDS in Form 26AS, inflated tax demands, delayed refunds, penalties, interest, and avoidable litigation, despite taxes having been duly deducted and deposited.
He urged the Union Government to consider providing one-time relief or a special condonation window, and called for the issuance of suitable guidelines under Section 119 of the Income-tax Act, which empowers the CBDT to grant relaxation in cases of genuine hardship. Sat Sharma stressed that such corrective measures would bring much-needed relief to honest taxpayers and prevent unnecessary financial and legal distress.
Reiterating BJP’s commitment to public welfare and good governance, Sat Sharma said that issues affecting the poor, homeless, and law-abiding taxpayers would continue to be raised with full force in Parliament until meaningful solutions are delivered.