From the President

As I write this communication, there is a widespread expression of anger and disappointment about the steep petrol price hike. While one understands that the government may have had its own compulsions, what is incomprehensible is the manner in which the prices were raised. The increase was announced immediately after the Parliament session concluded. If the government had to take the nation into confidence the best place to do so was the floor of the Lok Sabha.

Considering the current economic scenario, any price increase would lead to criticism of the leadership. The hallmark of a leader is to be able to explain unpopular decisions to the public. However to be able to convince the people to accept unpalatable actions a leader has to have credibility. Sadly no one among the government seems to possess it. Even if one accepts that the government cannot have control over oil prices and foreign exchange fluctuations it is within its power to make the price mechanism transparent. Back of the envelope calculation will make it apparent that a large component of the price that a petrol consumer pays is by way taxes to the Central and state governments and not cost of petrol. A citizen would not mind paying taxes if the money was well spent. Unfortunately that is not the case. A significant portion of government spending reaches the coffers of corrupt bureaucrats, politicians and their respective agents. The remaining is purportedly spent but spent most inefficiently. This is the primary cause of resentment.

In this rather gloomy atmosphere, one must commend the role that the media plays. Undoubtedly there are some excesses and some trials by the media which unnecessarily do irreparable harm to reputations. But given the information and facts that it brings to the fore this is a cost that which one will have to pay till Indian democracy matures. The recent effort by Amir Khan in his program Satyameva Jayate, is indeed laudable. There may be a debate about its impact on the resolution to the problem but there is no doubt that it substantially increases the awareness in regard to these maladies and that definitely is a welcome first step.

While on the power of the media, one must also note the change that the Finance Minister was compelled to make in the provisions of the Finance Bill before it became an Act. The representations in regard to the impact of the proposals in regard to the general anti-avoidance rules were considered by the powers that be and the provisions have been postponed for one year. One hopes that wisdom prevails and the said rules are introduced only after the requisite redressal mechanisms are available to taxpayers. The Finance Minister has stated that the Direct Tax Code after considering the recommendations of the standing committee will be placed before the Parliament in the monsoon session. One hopes that the bill will finally goes through the Parliament so that efforts made by professional do not remain an exercise in futility.

In its endeavour to keep its members updated on developments in the professional arena the Society has released a number of publications. Among them the yearly Referencer has been extremely popular. This publication is celebrating its golden jubilee and the 50th Referencer is proposed to be released on 14th June 2012. The Society has had a glorious past but has always has had its sights firmly set on the future. In keeping with this principle characteristic of the Society the theme of the Referencer is “Back to the Future”. I am sure most of you would have already booked your copy of this Referencer. If you have not done so I would earnestly request you to do so. While the Referencer has always been a great utility to all professionals this year’s copy promises to be a collector’s item.

Talking about the future, the students of today are professionals of the future. The Society has therefore always done its bit to ensure that these future chartered accountants become not only good professionals but responsible citizens. The Society organised a mega event – an Annual Day for students, which was attended by more than 300 students. The event was a great success. Around this time last year I was preparing to assume the responsibility of leading this august institution. I have now started preparations to hand over reins to the new team which has been elected for the ensuing year. Deepak Shah would be the President for the next year, and Naushad Panjwani will be the Vice President. I wish both of them and the new team success for the coming year.

With Warm Regards,
Pradip K. Thanawala