'This mega corruption scandal, as certified by the Supreme Court, will expose the unholy nexus between the BJP and its corrupt corporate masters'
Black money can take the form of a high-end property in Southeast Asia, a cruise ship floating on the Mediterranean or blue-chip shares held via an offshore fund manager.
Reliance ADA Group chairman Anil Ambani on Monday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Mumbai and recorded his statement in connection with an investigation linked to the alleged contravention of the foreign exchange law, official sources said. Ambani, 64, deposed at the office of the federal agency in south Mumbai. Ambani's statement was recorded as part of a fresh case filed under various sections of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), the sources said without elaborating.
Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Friday described the electoral bonds scheme as a 'very big scam' and demanded that a special investigation team (SIT) be set up with court-appointed officials to probe the alleged quid pro quo and wrongdoings under it.
UBS stepping in to save Credit Suisse with a $3.2-billion acquisition has provided the beleaguered Swiss bank's India employees a glimmer of hope. The surprise deal - engineered by the Swiss government - has triggered optimism of fewer job losses at Credit Suisse's India unit and better synergies at key verticals, such as wealth management and investment banking. "UBS is a much stronger hand. Coming within its fold will give Credit Suisse's wealth management and investment banking divisions a good home.
Tina Ambani, wife of Reliance ADA Group chairman Anil Ambani, on Tuesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Mumbai for questioning and recording her statement in connection with an investigation linked to the alleged contravention of the foreign exchange law, official sources said. Anil Ambani had recorded his statement in the case on Monday under sections of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and he is expected to appear before the central agency again later this week for completion of the exercise.
These companies are not registered with RBI or the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the key agencies regulating the financial markets.
'Modigate is snowballing into a huge thing with the electorate. The BJP is in for huge punishment by the electorate.'
The most important lesson is that you have to build your political proposition, and sell it yourself. You can't leave it to the courts, media, NGOs and civil society and expect them to play the role of the Opposition. That's precisely what Mr Modi's challengers have been doing and we know the results, notes Shekhar Gupta.
The IMF on Tuesday projected a growth rate of 6.1 per cent for India in 2023, which is a 0.2 percentage point upward revision compared with the April projection. This is reflective of the "momentum" from stronger-than-expected growth in the fourth quarter of 2022 as a result of stronger domestic investment, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said. "Growth in India is projected at 6.1 per cent in 2023, a 0.2 percentage point upward revision compared with the April projection," it said in its latest update of the World Economic Outlook.
Switzerland's 'Alpine Messi' Xherdan Shaqiri, hot from a hat-trick against Honduras in his last game, meets the real Messi on Tuesday as the Europeans seek a major World Cup upset when they face Argentina in the last 16.
Out of these, no balance has been found in case of 289 accounts
Arvind Kejriwal warned the media that "very big forces" would try and break the INDIA alliance by showing that there was a lot of acrimony among them.
"India and Switzerland are in renegotiations to adapt the existing double taxation treaty. Once this revised double taxation treaty comes into force, it will be possible to exchange account details," Swiss Federal Tax Administration spokesman Beat Furrer said.
His business successes which started with the international distribution rights for the Bollywood blockbuster movie 'Sangam' in 1964 made him one of the richest in Britain but it was the Bofors scam that made Srichand Parmanand Hinduja famous, or rather infamous, back home. SP Hinduja, as he was known, died in London on Wednesday after a prolonged illness. He was 87, a family spokesperson said. Born in a business family in Karachi, British India, he and his two younger brothers were accused of receiving payments totalling Rs 64 crore in illegal commissions to help Swedish gunmaker AB Bofors secure an Indian government contract.
The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday slapped a fine of Rs 2000 ($25) and a four-month jail sentence on fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya. In addition, the former liquor baron has been asked to deposit $40 million with 8 per cent interest within a month, failing which his properties would be attached to recover the amount. The court held Mallya guilty of contempt after it was brought to its notice that he had transferred $40 million to his children in the US.
Private banks in Switzerland are not allowing their top executives to travel abroad because of the apprehension that they would be detained, as the authorities are cracking the whip on banks over secrecy matters, says a media report.
In interview with FSA in front of Sebi, mystery man denies owning UBS account used to execute $2.5-billion unauthorised trades.
India and Switzerland, on August 30, 2010, signed a protocol amending the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement.
The amended treaty will enable India to get banking information in specific cases, beginning April 1, 2011.
Former Union law minister Ram Jethmalani on Thursday demanded setting up of a special investigation team to probe unaccounted money of Indians, estimated to the tune of $1500 billion, lying in Swiss and other foreign banks.
Kejriwal's new jobs promise comes days after he assured free electricity up to 300 units per month if voted to power in the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled state where polls are due by the year-end.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday said the agreement signed with Switzerland for sharing banking information on demand is likely to come into force by September.
A new framework has been put in place for automatic exchange of information between Switzerland and India to help check the black money menace with effect from January 1, 2018. The funds held by Indians through fiduciaries alone used to be in billions till 2007 but began falling after that amid fears of regulatory crackdown. It is now at second-lowest level in 20 years.
The Indian money in Swiss banks had fallen by 45 per cent in 2016, marking their biggest ever yearly plunge, to CHF 676 million (about Rs 4,500 crore) -- the lowest ever since the European nation began making the data public in 1987.
For the banking system a new cycle starts in FY2024. It's fraught with fresh challenges on asset quality and profitability, warns Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The Bombay high court on Monday directed the Income Tax department not to take any coercive action against Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani till November 17 on a show cause notice issued to him seeking to prosecute him under the Black Money Act. The I-T department had issued the notice to Ambani on August 8, 2022 for allegedly evading Rs 420 crore in taxes on undisclosed funds worth more than Rs 814 crore held in two Swiss bank accounts. The department has charged Ambani (63) with "wilful" evasion, saying he "intentionally" did not disclose his foreign bank account details and financial interests to Indian tax authorities.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday decided to hear on May 4 the petition filed by former law minister and advocate Ram Jethmalani and others seeking a direction to the government for taking action to bring back money stashed in foreign banks.
These individuals largely include businessmen associated with companies, including the dummy ones, in sectors ranging from real estate, financial services, technology and telecom to paints, home decoration, textiles, engineering goods, gems and jewellery. Several of these persons and their companies are said to be based in Kolkata, Gujarat, Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai.
Embattled businessman Vijay Mallya on Tuesday lost a legal battle to hold on to his plush London home after a British court refused to grant him a stay of enforcement in a long-running dispute with Swiss bank UBS. The 18/19 Cornwall Terrace luxury apartment overlooking Regent's Park in London, described in court as an "extraordinarily valuable property worth many tens of millions of pounds", is currently being occupied by Mallya's 95-year-old mother Lalitha. Delivering his judgment virtually for the Chancery Division of the High Court, Deputy Master Matthew Marsh concluded there were no grounds for him to grant further time for the Mallya family to repay a 20.4-million loan to UBS - the claimant in the case.
India has got the second set of Swiss bank account details of its nationals and entities under the automatic exchange of information pact with Switzerland, marking a key milestone in the government's fight against black money allegedly stashed abroad.
Gulliver had about $7.6 million pounds in a Swiss account in 2007.
Fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi's sister and brother-in-law have "turned approvers" in the over $2 billion PNB fraud case against him and they will help the Enforcement Directorate confiscate assets worth Rs 579 crore, including Swiss bank deposits, the agency said on Thursday. Forty-nine-year-old Nirav Modi, who is currently lodged in a London jail, his uncle Mehul Choksi and others are being probed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) money laundering case since 2018. The diamond merchant's younger sister Purvi Modi (47) is a Belgian national while her husband Maiank Mehta is a British citizen. They are stated to be based abroad and have never joined the probe.
He was referring to the issue of Indians allegedly stashing unaccounted money in Swiss banks.
Switzerland's Ambassador to India Linus von Castelmur also said the past cannot be undone, while promising full support of his country in cases where at least some proof is provided on tax frauds.
Switzerland remains the 'biggest private banking financial centres for cross border wealth management' with assets worth over CHF 2.11 trillion ($2.2 trillion), as per the study conducted by the Swiss Bankers Association and the Boston Consulting Group.
Both countries have been working on administrative assistance.
The Swiss National Bank, the country's central banking authority, has estimated the funds currently held by Indians in Swiss banks at a mere $1.98 billion. Fear of disclosure due to greater scrutiny of this illicit wealth has played the main role in the flight of capital.
In a shocking revelation, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said black money mainly comes from India.