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Government to probe new names in HSBC list: Arun Jaitley

by IBNS 09 Feb 2015, 10:45 am

New Delhi, Feb 9 (IBNS): Union finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said that the government would investigate new names added to a list of Indians with accounts at HSBC in Geneva as part of a bigger inquiry into black money issue.

According to reports, about 600 Indians were believed to have accounts at HSBC. Those names were shared in 2011 with India by France after an HSBC employee leaked the data. But the list now doubled to 1,200 Indians with a collective holding of 25,000 crores.

“The details that have come out today are ones we already have. Now the question is not about names but evidences that we need,” said Jaitley.

A Special Investigation Team (SIT), comprising retired judges, was constituted to probe the black money issue under the direction by the Supreme Court in 2009 based on a petition filed by noted lawyer Ram Jethmalani.

“There are some additional names too. If those names are of resident Indians and if they have accounts, there are cases,” the minister told reporters on Monday.

The Centre on Oct 29 last had submitted a list of 627 names of Indians who hold foreign bank accounts in countries like Switzerland to the Supreme Court. It was also learnt then that the SIT would submit a report on 220 names and would share details with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and other agencies on the matter.

The move was taken following a severe reprimand from the Supreme Court which is monitoring the attempts to recover untaxed or black money stashed abroad.

Pradip Burman of Dabur India, Rajkot-based bullion trader Pankaj Chimanlal Lodhya and Goa-based mining company Timblo Private Limited and its five Directors were among the names that figured in the list which was filed in the apex court by the government, sources said.