Over 8,660 pharma firms claimed tax deduction during 2019-20: I-T dept

The matter will come up again in court on Monday

The income tax (I-T) department has informed a division Bench of the Madras High Court that 8,667 pharma companies claimed tax deduction under ‘sales promotion expenses’ and ‘gifts’ during assessment year 2019-20.

The information was filed in a matter where a division Bench, comprising Justice N Kirubakaran and Justice P Velmurugan, took suo motu cognizance to consider the larger issue of bribing doctors and overpricing of drugs by pharmaceutical companies.

When the matter was heard earlier, the Bench had called for various details from the Centre, the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) and the Medical Council of India (MCI). 

These include steps taken