A Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) official said that the proposal has been sent to the law ministry for consideration. "The extent of waiver, whether full or partial, will be decided after we get a reply from the law ministry," he added.

The official said the provision is being relaxed to encourage more litigants to avail of the scheme. It was being seen that many companies in which show cause notices had been issued against their directors were not showing keen interest in the scheme, he added.

The plan, which came into effect from September 1 and ends on December 31, has evoked a poor response so far. From the over 1,300 assesees who have availed of the scheme, only Rs 100-odd crore has flowed into government coffers so far.

The revenue department had estimated indirect-tax arrears of over Rs 12,000 crore as eligible under thescheme, with a maximum potential of generating Rs 6,000 crore. Under the present provision, in cases where penalty has not been adjudicated, even though the company can avail of the scheme by paying 50 per cent of the tax arrears of duty, the directors have also to file for amnesty under the plan as they are considered different persons than the company.