The Centre announced on Monday that the investigations in the cases of the “Paradise Papers” ~ a cache of 13.4 million leaked documents on offshore finances and business transactions of the world’s rich and the powerful, including from India, in global tax havens ~ will be monitored through a reconstituted Multi-Agency Group (MAG) headed by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) chairman with representatives from CBDT, Enforcement Directorate (ED), Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
A day after the leaked Paradise Papers ~ corporate data mainly from Bermuda’s law firm Appleby as well as the Singapore-based Asiaciti Trust and corporate registries maintained by governments in 19 secrecy jurisdictions or tax havens ~ hit the global headlines, the Union Finance MInistry issued a statement, declaring that “The Investigation units of the Income Tax Department (ITD) have been alerted to take note of (these) revelations for immediate appropriate action”.
The Finance Ministry said, “It has been reported that many cases of offshore entities are already under investigation on fast track. As soon as further information surfaces, swift action as per law will follow.”
A MAG was constituted in April 2016 to probe into the revelations about the offshore business dealings of many Indian individuals and entities whose names were then found in “Panama Papers” leak.
Both these leaks were investigated by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and their media partners across the world.
Noting that the Paradise Papers revelations indicate that out of 180 countries represented in their data “India ranks 19th in terms of number of names” and that “714 Indians reportedly appear in the tally”, the Finance Ministry, however, claimed, “Names of only a few Indians (legal entities as well as individuals) have appeared so far in the media.”
“The website of ICIJ suggests that information will be released in phases and structured data connected to the Paradise Papers investigation will be released only in the coming weeks on its Offshore Leaks Database,” the Ministry added.
The reconstituted MAG would first go through the details of income tax returns filed by the 714 Indian individuals and entities and subsequently take action on a case-to-case basis.
Indians who figure in Paradise Papers include Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan, fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya, corporate lobbyist Niira Radia, film star Sanjay Dutt’s wife Dilnashin known as Manyata, Union Minister Jayant Sinha and the BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP R K Sinha, according to reports published in The Indian Express, ICIJ’s partner in India.
The Indian company, Sun Group, founded by Nand Lal Khemka, figured as Appleby’s second largest client with as many as 118 offshore entities, even as several prominent corporates figures among Appleby’s Indian clients.
The Indian names figuring in the Paradise Papers reportedly include GMR Group, Jindal Steel, Apollo Tyres, Havells, Hindujas, Emaar MGF, Videocon as well as firms in Sun-TV-Aircel-Maxis case, Essar-Loop 2G case, SNC-Lavalin case, fresh fnancial links in a CBI case against YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy, and a firm Ziqitza (with Congress leader Sachin Pilot and former Minister P Chidambaram’s son Karti as early honorary/independent directors) linked to the Rajasthan ambulance scam being probed by the CBI.