Bengaluru entrepreneur Rohit Shroff plans to leave India by 2026, citing a broken tax system. Despite paying Rs 4 crore in taxes in 18 months, he claims to have received only increased scrutiny and notices.
A Bengaluru entrepreneur's emotional LinkedIn post has ignited a wider debate on how India treats its most compliant taxpayers. Rohit Shroff, founder of Aflog Group, says he plans to leave India in 2026, despite paying nearly Rs 4 crore in taxes over the last 18 months.
His reason is simple, yet unsettling: the system, he says, is broken.
'Why Are Honest Taxpayers Treated Like Offenders?'
Shroff revealed that across GST and income tax, his businesses have paid more than $500,000, roughly Rs 4 crore, in just over a year.
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"In the last 12–18 months, I've paid over Rs 4 crore to a country that looks at its most compliant contributors with suspicion by default," he wrote.
Yet instead of relief, he says the scrutiny only increased, more notices, more clarifications, more pressure.
'Only 5% Pay Income Tax, But We Bear the Brunt'
Pointing to a striking contradiction, Shroff noted that less than five per cent of Indians pay direct income tax, yet enforcement efforts seem heavily focused on this small group.
"When scrutiny increases, it's the same people who get targeted, the ones already inside the system," he said, describing the process as relentless and multi-layered.
Running a Business or Running a Compliance Factory?
Behind the scenes, Shroff says businesses are forced to maintain large compliance teams just to survive, handling monthly GST filings, quarterly TDS obligations and yearly income tax returns.
And what do they get in return?
"Zero tangible benefit," he said. Fighting the system, he added, costs more time and money than simply giving in and paying up.
'The System Is Built for Votes, Not for Builders'
In one of the strongest parts of his post, Shroff claimed the system is designed to please the majority, not support the minority that builds businesses and pays taxes consistently.
"People like us are politically insignificant. That makes us easy to ignore and easy to extract from," he wrote.
'I'm Done With the "Building in India" Dream'
Shroff's post ended with a painful declaration.
"When Indians succeed abroad, it's not because they hate India. It's because the system here penalises growth instead of rewarding it," he said.
"I'm done building in India. The goal for 2026 is simple: move out of the country and build elsewhere. This isn't about patriotism. It's about survival."
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. Asianet Newsable has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
