Yash Birla among seven Indian names made public for Swiss a/c
27 May 2015 11:24 PM GMT
Two Mumbai-based individuals named in the famous City Limousines scam, a Delhi-based businesswoman Ritika Sharma and two others -- Sneh Lata Sawhney and Sangita Sawhney-- are the other Indians whose names have been made public.
The names of these seven “Indian nationals” have been published in Switzerland’s Federal Gazette with regard to details sought about them by the Indian authorities.
Among these, some details have already been shared by the Swiss Federal Tax Administration (FTA) with India, including about Birla and Sharma of Blessings Apparel, as per the gazette notifications.
In case of Sayed Mohamed Masood, being probed for a major <g data-gr-id="52">ponzi</g> scheme run from Mumbai through City Limousines, some details were shared by Swiss authorities in the past. His accounts were also frozen a few years ago following a request from the Enforcement Directorate.
Fresh details about him and about Chaud <g data-gr-id="40">Kauser</g> Mohamed Masood have been sought by the Indian authorities, as per the notifications published in Switzerland’s official gazette.
While asking the named persons to appeal within 30 days, the notifications mention the names and date of birth of all the seven, including Gurjit Singh Kochar, who is married into the Chadha family and is said to be outside India now.
The notifications for Birla and Sharma also mention their Mumbai and Delhi addresses, respectively.
Welcoming the Swiss government’s move, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said this should serve as a “sufficient indicator” to those with unaccounted wealth abroad about the action to follow.
Speaking to reporters in Ahmedabad, he said the era of tax haven has come to an end and it’s no longer safe to keep the assets abroad illegally.
The Yash Birla group later said in an emailed statement that he had “no individual bank account in his name or under his control” and this position has already been communicated to the Indian tax authorities.
Repeated calls to Sharma did not elicit any <g data-gr-id="51">response,</g> while a family representative declined to comment on the notification issued about Kochar, who is believed to be outside India. He is facing <g data-gr-id="50">probe</g> by the Income Tax Department and other agencies for quite some time.
No contact details were available for comments from <g data-gr-id="53">Sawhneys</g>. Despite repeated <g data-gr-id="42">attempts</g> <g data-gr-id="54">Masoods</g> could not be contacted. The names being made public in this manner could include some big names, as those whose names have been published in the latest gazette includes Francisco Jose Ortiz von Bismarck.
As per German media reports, he is a descendant of the first Chancellor of German empire Otto von Bismarck.
Yash Birla has ‘no individual account’ in his name, says group
With Yash Birla’s name being made public by the Swiss government in relation to an information request from the Indian tax authorities, his business group on Tuesday said he has “no individual bank account in his name or under his control”. The group also said this position has already been communicated to the tax authorities here. “Mr Yash Birla has no individual bank account in his name or under his control. This has been explicitly confirmed earlier by the Swiss bank in writing and the same has already been communicated to the Indian tax authorities,” an official spokesperson of Yash Birla Group said in an <g data-gr-id="82">emailed</g> statement. This was in response to queries sent to the group with regard to Birla’s name being published in the Swiss government’s official gazette about information provided to the Indian tax department on a request made in this regard.
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