Arjun (A) — Govind Bolo Hari Gopala
Bolo Radharaman Hari Gopala Bolo Shrikrishna ! Shrikrishna !
Shrikrishna (S) — Arey arjun, today
you are chanting my bhajan! What is the matter?
A — I am in a good mood today; for a
change !
S — Oh, i see. But what makes you so
happy?
A — This time, 30th
September date was extended
without our asking for it. All of us were anticipating no such extra time. So
it was a bonus!
S — How complacent you people are!
You become happy even by such small things. In a way, it is a good quality.
A — Bhagwan, we
are otherwise slogging
day and night – literally reeling
under the pressure. So even small reliefs mean a big thing for us.
S —
So this time,
you could complete
it quite comfortably, you mean.
A — Not exactly. But yes. The
nightmare was a little less frightful!
S — and then you enjoyed Diwali!
A — Well, to some extent yes. Still, the
pressure of time-barring assessments continued. But by and large, there was
relaxation.
S — That means, now you will wake up directly in next
September !
A — ha ! ha
!! ha !!! not really. now
i will have to manage my CPE hours.
S — ‘Manage’? What do you mean? Why
always at the last moment?
A — That is the real fun. We need to
simply enrol for some seminar, relax there; and get CPE credit.
S — But how will you manage the new
things that are coming?
A — what are they?
S — GST; and that ICDS which was postponed last
year. And many other regulations that are continuously coming.
A — See, it will keep on happening. There are
experts available. They will study and guide us. Why break our head?
S —That’s the pity, Arjun. Most of you have almost
given up
self-study. Even CPE hours
you are ‘managing’. not taking it
seriously.
A —So far, lack of self-study has
not been declared as a misconduct!
S —Great thought, Arjun ! are you the same Arjun who was so inquisitive
about knowledge even on the battlefield? are you the same Arjun who had a quest
for knowledge?
A —Bhagwan, in
those days, knowledge
was respected. It had value. Now, no one cares for it. everything can be
managed.
S — Alas! What a downfall !
Not studying in itself may not be a
misconduct; but all misconducts arise out of ignorance and lethargy, why don’t
you understand this? not following the institute’s guidelines also is a
misconduct.
A — What you say is right. That
reminds me, i have just uploaded the returns. But many hard copies of financial
statements are yet to be signed ! and they are also to be uploaded to ROC.
S — you mean, balance sheets are
still to be signed?
A —Yes. that’s
usual. We sign
it backdated. Sometimes, even
the checking continues after the returns are filed.
S —Oh! you may be aware, there were
instances of audit being signed; and email queries continuing even after the
signing date !
A — Yes. My friend was held guilty
of that. But i am very careful about it.
S — Anyway ! you people
won’t improve. But right since
ancient time, you are my favourite Shishya.
I cannot see you not pursuing
knowledge.
A — Lord, i am your true follower. Whatever i said just
now was the general attitude of CAs. i do my study quite religiously.
S —
In fact, this
is the right
time for knowledge updation. For GST, you must get
geared up. Not only yourself; but see that your staff, articles, clients and
also their accountants get educated. It will be a team-effort. You should
encourage clients to attend the seminars.
A — I agree. One will get the
benefit of early start, i will tell my other CA
friends also to be a little more serious about studies. Without updated
knowledge, we can’t survive.
S — You said it ! you need to be
constantly awake. Your motto is ‘Ya esha Supteshu Jagarti !’
A —But Bhagwan, too much of
knowledge often leads to a dilemma – one becomes indecisive. Same dilemma i
faced in Mahabharat war.
S —True. But then the knowledge
alone cleared your dilemma. moreover, mere error of professional judgment is
not a misconduct?
A —Then what
is misconduct? We may commit mistakes even when we know all
interpretations.
S — The misconduct lies in lack of application of
mind.
By your working papers, you should
be able to show that you studied the issue, applied your mind and adopted a
plausible interpretation. it may not be 100% correct.
Others may perceive it differently.
A — I followed. Good that you
mentioned about working papers. i will get them also properly organised. After
one year, we can’t remember anything; and can’t locate anything.
S — Shabbash ! that’s like a
good Ca. that is why you are always
blessed, my dear !
A — Please continue to enlighten me
and motivate me.
Bhagwan, Aapko hamara pranam !
Om Shanti.
Note:
This dialogue
seeks to highlight
the importance of continuous updating of knowledge.
