India, March 26 -- Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has defended the provisions of the new Income Tax Bill, 2025 in Parliament, highlighting the importance of digital surveillance in fighting against financial frauds.

During her address, she underlined the growing importance of encrypted messages and other forms of digital data in exposing financial fraud and tax evasion.

The minister also revealed that WhatsApp messages and Google Maps history had played a crucial role in detecting unaccounted wealth linked to crypto assets.

Sitharaman further said that currently the government uses its authority to access a users' online personal data in cases where the individual does not cooperate to provide critical information.

Reasonin...