No one can hold 2 PPF accounts

SC Vasudeva

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I opened a PPF (HUF) account and a PPF (individual) account simultaneously in 1990. I have continued these accounts and extended them to 2014 with regular subscriptions. A officer at a post office 

recently advised me that:

a) An individual cannot maintain two PPF accounts under his/her name and so one of my accounts will need to be closed and any interest earned thereof will be forfeited. 

b)Due to an amendment to the PPF scheme, no interest would be payable on PPF (HUF) account after 2009. This is despite regular subscriptions made to the account until recent date and interests being credited on my passbook by the post office. 

• Is it possible for an individual to have two PPF accounts (HUF and individual)?
• Is interest payable post 2009 for the existing PPF (HUF) account? — Mohan Lal

Your queries are replied hereunder:-

• The Public Provident Fund Scheme, 1968, provides that an individual may, on his behalf or on behalf of a minor of whom he is the guardian, subscribe to a public provident fund (PPF) account.  At present, it is not possible to have a PPF account in the name of an individual as well as in the name of HUF.  It was possible to have two accounts prior to May 13, 2005. After May 2005, the provisions for the opening of an additional account in the name of HUF were discontinued by an amendment to the aforesaid scheme.
• The opening of an account under HUF and the omission of the relevant clause from the aforesaid scheme give an impression that the interest on an account in the name of HUF would not be payable.

I am working in a government organisation on a contract basis and getting a “consolidated salary” of Rs 50,000 per month. I am not entitled to any other benefits or allowances. The organisation is deducting tax “per month” despite assessing my liabilities which otherwise allow me a relaxation against the same. Is it essential that the organisation should made such monthly deductions? Can I get that deducted amount as part of the income and later pay tax on it after assessing my liabilities? — Sangeeta

You have not indicated the nature of liabilities which have been assessed by your employer.  The employer is obliged to consider deduction allowable under Chapter VI-A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (The Act) --- deduction allowable for LIC payment, deposit in public provident fund (PPF) account, tuition fee paid for the children, the payment of principal amount of a loan taken for the construction or purchase of a house, deduction for disability, deduction for medical insurance, etc. In case your liabilities are covered by the above Chapter, the employer is obliged to take such payments made by you into consideration after verifying the supporting evidence.  Tax deduction at source (TDS) is required to be made under law and in case it is not done, the payer can be subjected to the levy of interest and penalty. The employer, therefore, cannot take any liberties with the provisions relating to deduction of tax at source.

My son took an educational loan from a nationalised bank in 2012 for pursuing higher studies in India. My wife and I stood surety. He completed his two-year course in 2013-14 and joined his first employment in June 2014. During FY14, I paid to the bank about Rs. 80,000 as interest against the said loan from my savings, but could not show it in my tax return for rebate (assessment year 2014-15).  Can I submit a revised return? Can I claim tax rebate in next year's return? Can my son claim tax rebate for the interest paid by me in 2013-14 in his first tax return to be filed next year. — P. Kumar

Your queries are replied hereunder:-

• It is possible to revise return for the assessment year 2014-15 upto 31st March 2015 so as to claim the interest paid on loan out of your savings on the amount borrowed for the purposes of pursuing higher education by your son.
• It is not possible for you to claim the deduction in the next year in respect of interest paid for the preceding year.
• Your son could have claimed the deduction in respect of such interest provided he had paid the amount of such interest out of his income chargeable to tax.