It's Temple Run across India in hard times

FAIZABAD: The income tax department has issued notices to all religious trusts and major temples in Ayodhya asking them to present their balance sheets as on November 8, when the demonetisation order was implemented. The I-T department swung into action after reports that there was a beeline for all religious trusts for turning black money into white after the demonetisation announcement.

The I-T department has also issued notices to religious trusts being run by scions of erstwhile estates, said sources.

I-T commissioner Vijay Kumar said, "We have served notices to all religious trusts. Ac tion would be taken against trusts whose accounts would have anomalies."

Income tax lawyer Anuj Singhal, who represents various trusts in Ayodhya, said, "We will decide our course of action after receiving the notice."

Abhijat Singh Bisen, manager of Pateshwari Devi temple religious trusts, said, "Why should we worry; we are honest and file I-T returns." But he added that some religious trusts are involved in money laundering.

After asking devotees not to put the demonetised notes in donation boxes, temples in Lucknow are going an extra mile to keep their balance-sheets clean.

"Accounts are audited routinely but since demonetisation began, the logbooks were verified once more," said Mahant Devya Giri of the Mankameshwar Temple. Likewise, a chartered accountant visits the Hanuman Setu Temple twice a day . "The CA examines all the expenditure and income to rule out any human error," said an officer in the management committee.