Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Anglo-Indian Response to the Income Tax: Feb 2 1886

The imposition of the Income Tax on India in 1886 is obviously a huge deal, and the Civil & Military Gazette discusses and opines on it for weeks. One of the curious twists is the possibility of working with natives to lobby the government in London to reconsider the levying of the tax:


The most amusing idea in this is that of a "combination": "If the independent Anglo-Indians would realize that their native fellow-subjects have the same interest in economy and more desire for it, they would seek a combination. A joint movement would soon tell on statesman at home."

The thinking behind this is so surprising that I'm not sure what to do with it -- are they really suggesting a joint agitation of white Anglo-Indians with native Indians against the crown?

In any case, the income tax introduced in 1886 inspired Kipling's poem "The Rupaiyat of Omar Cal'vin," and the Kipling.org site also includes some additional historical material relating to the new tax (which on the whole looks pretty fair and not terribly burdensome): link

1 comment:

  1. Hello,

    Income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses. It is an assessed, and shall be chargeable to the income tax at the rate or rates prescribed under the finance act for the relevant assessment year. Thanks a lot....

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    ReplyDelete