After much vacillation, the Narendra Modi-led government, on being rapped by the Supreme Court, finally submitted a list of 627 account holders in Geneva's HSBC Bank before the apex court which, without opening the sealed envelopes, directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) for further investigation. Those excitedly waiting for the names to be made public, without any clue about the complexity of the issue, have undoubtedly been left disappointed. While the government's argument about complying with the confidentiality clause of Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement may have some merit, what is unacceptable is the inordinate delay in completing the investigation in respect of names of such account holders received as far back as 2011 from the French government.
The entire controversy over the "black money" stashed away in safe havens abroad has, however, created an impression in the minds of the people that it is merely a case of those holding illegal bank accounts abroad evading taxes in India. But the issue is more serious than just a case of tax evasion per se. What is crucial is not only to quantify the amounts of tax evaded but to also trace the legitimacy of the sources of acquisition of such money deposited in foreign banks. One can create wealth through business or transactions authorised by the law and yet evade tax. This would be a case of "tax evasion" simplicitor as against those acquiring wealth by indulging in questionable and often dangerous methods. It is the criminality aspect of the latter that assumes even greater significance and needs to be identified for suitable action.
S K Choudhury Bangalore
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