Gandhinagar: Emphasising the importance of chartered accountants in preventing corruption and detecting irregularities, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday said any dilution of their unique role would have a cascading effect on the country's economy and financial health.
Addressing the inaugural session of 'Global Professional Accountants Convention' (GloPAC) at Mahatma Mandir convention centre in Gandhinagar, he said tax evasion and financial frauds endanger the financial stability and growth of the economy. "There is a thin line between tax planning and evasion. Chartered accountants should always tilt in favour of tax planning and condemn tax evasion. As watchdogs, your capacity is potent enough to contain these. CAs are a financial form of MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and CT (computed tomography) scan. There can be no legal transgression or window dressing if a CA is determined," the VP asserted.
Observing that a tax system is only as good or as complicated as tax professionals make it out to be, Dhankhar asked CAs to take a pledge to be global leaders in bench-marking best practices that enhance ease and transparency. He said CAs are the custodians of financial integrity and need to exemplify by action so as to secure transparent and accountable financial systems, adding that "when a CA stands up, the resistance may be momentary but ultimately he has to prevail".
Highlighting their contribution in combating corruption, uncovering malfunctions, and detecting corporate fraud, the VP said the determination of CAs could eliminate legal transgressions and window dressing practices. Ethics play a pivotal role in fostering trust and integrity across financial reporting, auditing, taxation and consulting services and "comprising on ethics is no less than an earthquake in the fiscal world", he said.
Emphasizing the significance of a fair taxation and financial reporting system extending beyond mere revenue generation for the government, Dhankhar said CAs in India have the highest ethics quotient as they make their clients adhere to the law. In today's ecosystem under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, transparency and accountability stand as new norms, he asserted.
"The power corridors, once plagued by corrupt practices influencing commercial decisions, have undergone a cleansing process. The corridors are now sanitized. They (corrupt people) have gone forever. When there is zero corruption, a CA can play on the front foot," the VP said. "The people who think they are above law, that they are of special category have learnt lessons the hard way. No one is beyond the reach of law," Dhankhar pointed out.
Talking about the importance of economic nationalism in trade and industry, the Vice President emphasized its priority over fiscal gains. He appreciated the 'vocal for local' initiative of the government and highlighted how importing non-essential goods impacts foreign exchange reserves, hampers job creation and obstructs entrepreneurial growth.
He also said the export of raw materials without value addition leads to adverse impact on employment opportunities and underscores the nation's inadequacy in engaging effectively in value addition processes. The VP said India had moved from being one of the "fragile five economies"to being the fifth largest economy in the world in a short span of a decade, surpassing the economic prowess of the United Kingdom and France in 2022.
He further emphasized India's momentum towards surpassing Japan and Germany by 2030, which would make the country the third largest economy in the world. Referring to GST as the "tryst with modernity", he said it stands as the largest tax reform since Independence and had completely changed the country's indirect taxation landscape. Dhankhar praised the CA fraternity for its role in shaping Goods and Services Tax into the user-friendly 'good and simple tax".
Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal urged CAs to be more "inclusive" and launch a social initiative to adopt and mentor children from rural areas so that they too could become part of this profession. The three-day long event, organised by Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), will see participation of 4,000 CAs from India and nearly 200 international delegates to discuss a host of issues related to accounting, audit and other topics. At the event, the ICAI unveiled a new 'CA' logo containing the Tricolour and the word India.
