'Dead Body' Illustration On ITR e-Filing Portal Leaves Taxpayers Shocked

The official portal for filing Income Tax Returns (ITR) has sparked outrage on social media due to the use of a 'dead body' graphic for its 'Session Expired' page. This has gone viral on social media and many users called out the Income Tax Department for using a 'distasteful' illustration.   

The illustration shows a person lying flat beside a burnt-down candle. The graphic of the man is shown with a garland, which symbolises a dead body.

Some users on social media thought that the illustration showed a lack of sensitivity.

A user wrote, "RIP Income Tax Portal".

One user on X said, "Dead body for session expired? This is so distasteful."

However, a few users also saw the illustration in a positive light. One user praised the developer who created the page and said the person deserves a raise.

Another comment read, "First time I’m seeing Indian government web UX with a sense of humour."

One user also shared an image of the ITR portal with the graphic showing "Ghoomar", a folk dance from Rajasthan.

The user said, "ITR filing portal by Infosys be like: Forget your returns, enjoy our free 'Ghoomar dance' show instead. Every time 'Session Expired' pops up, it feels like I'm filing patience returns, not income tax."

As the Sept. 15 ITR filing deadline approached, many taxpayers raised complaints of glitches, difficulties in logging in and sluggish response times, especially during the busy periods. 

In a last-minute move, the I-T Department extended the income tax return filing date by one day, setting the new deadline as Sept. 16.

"A record 7.3 crore+ ITRs have been filed till 15th Sept 2025, surpassing last year’s 7.28 crore. We sincerely thank taxpayers & professionals for their timely compliance. To facilitate further filings of ITRs, the due date has been extended by one day (16th September 2025)," the IT department said in a post on X.