In recent days, many taxpayers have reported receiving an email from the Income Tax Department containing information about the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA). The mail, complete with “Do’s and Don’ts” for property buyers, was sent from the official domain of the Income Tax Department.

On the face of it, this seems like a harmless public awareness message — after all, RERA is a beneficial legislation aimed at protecting homebuyers. But a deeper look raises some important questions.

Why is the Income Tax Department Sending RERA Messages?
The income tax system has one of the most comprehensive databases of citizens — including their contact details, PAN-linked email IDs, and financial profiles. In this case, it appears the department has used its taxpayer database to circulate a RERA awareness campaign initiated by another wing of the government (possibly the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs).

The logic could be simple:

• Homebuyers and real estate investors are most likely to be found among taxpayers.

• A targeted email ensures the message reaches the relevant audience quickly and effectively.

However, this leads to the more delicate question of data use vs. data misuse.

Where the Concern Lies
While the government has the right to use taxpayer data for official communication, the expectation from taxpayers is that this channel will be used strictly for income-tax-related matters — such as filing deadlines, refund updates, or compliance notices.

Using the official @incometax.gov.in channel for cross-sector campaigns — even if well-intentioned — blurs the line between taxpayer service communication and general government publicity drives.

Potential problems include:

• Flooding taxpayer inboxes, making important messages harder to notice.

• Perception of misuse of confidential data, even if legally permissible.

• Dilution of credibility, as taxpayers may treat future compliance communication less urgently.

A Better Way to Do It
If the government wishes to run such cross-sector awareness campaigns, it could:

• Use separate awareness email IDs (e.g., gov-awareness@nic.in) rather than the core tax department’s official channel.

• Provide opt-in subscription options where taxpayers can choose to receive non-tax government updates.

• Coordinate with financial portals, housing forums, and social media campaigns to reach the target audience without diluting the sanctity of income tax communication.

The Legal and Ethical Side
The Income Tax Act and allied rules give the department wide powers to collect and maintain taxpayer data for enforcement, assessment, and policy purposes. However, the Right to Privacy as upheld by the Supreme Court in the Puttaswamy judgment (2017) emphasises that data collection must be for a specific purpose, and its use should be proportionate and necessary.

While a RERA awareness email may not breach confidentiality in a strict legal sense, it tests the boundaries of purpose limitation — a key principle of data protection.

With the upcoming Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, government departments may have to clearly justify such cross-usage of personal contact details.