Swiss banks as moneylaunderers and black money handlers. Ace act: P-Notes of PC. Professor R Vaidyanathan, who has written extensively on the issue of black money stashed abroad, tells Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa that it's very important for Arvind Kejriwal to reveal his source of information on his latest anti-graft expose. The issue of black money stashed in foreign banks took centre- stage again on Friday with Arvind Kejriwal 'revealing' big names like Mukesh and Anil Ambani in his latest anti-corruption expose.
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Swiss banks as moneylaunderers and black money handlers. Ace act: P-Notes of PC.
Professor R Vaidyanathan, who has written extensively on the issue of
black money stashed abroad, tells Rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa that it's
very important for Arvind Kejriwal to reveal his source of information
on his latest anti-graft expose.
The issue of black money stashed in foreign banks took centre- stage again on Friday with Arvind Kejriwal 'revealing' big names like Mukesh and Anil Ambani in his latest anti-corruption expose.
Friday's revelations dealt mainly with the money stashed away at the HSBC bank, Geneva. R Vaidyanathan, professor at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, told rediff.com that the first question that needs to be answered is from where did Kejriwal get the details, and unless he does so, these will remain mere allegations.
Professor Vaidyanathan, who has written extensively on the issue, was also part of the team which prepared a paper on black money stashed away at the Swiss Bank.
It was in 2011 that India got data on the accounts of Indians holding illegal wealth in HSBC.
"The pertinent question is from where has this landed today and how did India Against Corruption manage to get it? When India first got the list from HSBC it appeared as though it was France which gave the list. However, it does not appear that the list which came to India had any names on it," Professor Vaidyanathan pointed out.
"Had the French government given us the list then the names would have been on it. The chances of France giving us the list would not arise as we are not covered under the European Union agreement. This would mean that India got a copy of the list from HSBC as the list had no names," he said.
"In the list provided by HSBC, the geographical distribution of the money with account numbers were provided, but there are no names on it. Hence it is extremely important that Kejriwal explains the source," he added.
"Now assuming Mukesh Ambani was the account holder, then the details of his holdings could be provided only by his handling officer in the bank. For a person like Mukesh Ambani, the handling officer would be at the level of a CEO of the bank, and it is unlikely that he would share such information with individuals," he noted.
"The other source could be the Income Tax department, which has every chance of having such details. Did someone from there hand over the information to IAC or was it someone from the government? This Kejriwal would have to answer in order to give more credit to his expose," he said.
"The other nation with details of HSBC is Greece. This list was provided to Greece under the EU agreement. However, in that list there were just names but no amount had been mentioned. The only person having proper data would be the handling officer of the respective account holder," he reiterated.
In 2011 the Government of India got the details that there were 782 Indians who had an account with HSBC. The government, however, refused to divulge any more information on the same, stating that it would publish a white paper on the same.
The HSBC is already under the scanner in India after reports had suggested that crime syndicates and drug cartels had transacted with this bank. A full-fledged inquiry is on by the Reserve Bank of India and the Revenue Intelligence Wing, which in its preliminary findings discovered that persons within the bank had helped create accounts in the name of dummy firms.
http://us.mg6.mail.yahoo.com/neo/launch?.rand=9jt2jlsvt41a9
Published: November 10, 2012 02:33 IST | Updated: November 10, 2012 02:55 IST
‘HSBC arranged for opening of accounts abroad and withdrawal from Delhi itself’
Gargi Parsai
The Hindu India Against Corruption members, Arvind Kejriwal, Prashant Bhushan and Shanti Bhushan addressing the media on money stashed in Swiss banks, in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: V.V.Krishnan
Three from the list of 700, which was shared by France, disclose bank’s modus operandi
India Against Corruption (IAC) released on Friday “the modus operandi” for transfer of undisclosed funds to Swiss banks as disclosed in the statements of three persons who had opened accounts in Dubai, Zurich and Geneva with HSBC Bank. They were named in a list of 700, which was shared by the French government in a compact disc with the Indian government last year.
The names of the 10 VIPs, including the Ambanis, Congress MP Anu Tandon, Jet Airways chief Naresh Goyal and the Burman brothers of the Dabur Group, were among the 700 whose names were not revealed by the government. The accounts held by them pertained to 2006.
IAC members Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan said Parminder Singh Kalra and Praveen Sawhney, who gave their statements, were based in Delhi, while the third person, Vikram Dhirani, was from Ghaziabad.
The persons, who were questioned under Section 132 (4)/133A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, revealed the modus operandi of the “underground banking” system or the ‘hawala’ network (money transferred but not moved).
As per the papers released by IAC at a press conference here, Mr. Dhirani said in his deposition that he had opened an account with HSBC in Dubai in 2005 and closed it in 2006. A bank representative came to him in Delhi to open an account. He did not travel to Dubai for opening or operating it. The formalities was completed in Delhi. He agreed that a person authorised by bank officials would collect the cash from him, which would show up in his HSBC account in Dubai. After the money was deposited, Mr. Dhirani was given a confirmation. However, no document was given.
IAC said the statement revealed that Mr. Dhirani told income tax officials that he had deposited about Rs. 12 crore in alleged unaccounted income in the Dubai account over a period of time. The account was closed in 2006, and the money was withdrawn and given to him in Delhi. Neither did he go to Dubai to collect the cash, nor did he arrange for his representative to take the cash on his behalf. “The bank officials arranged for delivery of cash… in India.”
According to IAC, Mr. Kalra opened an account with HSBC, Zurich, on the advice of a Swiss investment consultant based in Zurich. To make deposits of undisclosed money to the tune of Rs. 8 crore-Rs. 9 crore, he gave the cash in instalments to a person in Delhi. Every time, a different person came to collect the cash for being remitted in the Zurich branch of HSBC. The account was closed in 2008-09 even while he remained in Delhi.
“The statement shows,” Mr. Kejriwal said, “that bank officials are providing illegal channels for transfer of cash from their client account-holder in Delhi to Zurich and vice versa.”
He said Mr. Sawhney, who had opened an account with HSBC, Geneva, told income tax officials that his father had transferred $ 1.8 million to this account. “Regarding the modus operandi for withdrawal of money, Mr. Sawhney said he used to call the bank officials in Geneva who would arrange for delivery of cash in India through their agents in the hawala channel. All discussions with the bank officials were on the phone. Every time he asked for cash, a different person used to come to deliver it and he knew none of them.”
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/hsbc-arranged-for-opening-of-accounts-abroad-and-withdrawal-from-delhi-itself/article4082261.ece?homepage=true&css=print
Centre should reveal names of Swiss bank account holders: BJP
SATURDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 2012 00:13 PNS | NEW DELHI
The BJP on Friday demanded the Government to release the names of 700 persons holding illegitimate accounts in foreign countries.
“Government should tell what it has done to bring back black money. It should also now make public all the 700 names of account holders given by the French Government. You
cannot pick and choose some names,” BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.
The party also patted its back for having first raised the issue during 2009 Lok Sabha elections and pooh-poohed the Congress for making fun of its leader LK Advani when he raked up the issue then.
Seeking an investigation into the whole HSBC affair, the BJP leader said her party would raise this issue in the
forthcoming winter session of Parliament. Asked about Congress MP Annu Tandon having a Swiss account, BJP leaders said their MPs had submitted affidavits to their respective heads (Speaker and Chairman) in Parliament and challenged the ruling party legislators to do the same.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/home/online-channel/360-todays-newspaper/107962-centre-should-reveal-names-of-swiss-bank-account-holders-bjp.html
IAC charges have more holes than Swiss cheese!
SATURDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 2012 00:12 PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | NEW DELHI
The Ambani brothers, Jet Airways, the Dabur Group and Congress MP Annu Tandon have rejected allegations by Arvind Kejriwal that they held Swiss bank accounts and parked black money in HSBC Bank in Geneva.
Refuting the charges levelled by Indian Against Corruption (IAC), Mukesh Ambani-headed Reliance Industries Ltd said neither RIL or Mukesh have or had any “illegitimate” accounts anywhere in the world.
“As part of normal business, international subsidiaries of RIL deal with several global banks including HSBC. These accounts are fully compliant with all regulations and are
disclosed in their appropriate jurisdictions and in India. The continued tirade of baseless allegations being made by IAC against us appears to be instigated by vested interests,” an RIL statement said.
In a separate statement, the Anil Ambani-headed Reliance Group denied all allegations made by Kejriwal. “Anil D Ambani had no bank accounts with HSBC in Geneva,” it said. The
statement said it is “regrettable that such baseless allegations are being made by IAC at the behest of vested interests.”
Annu Tandon, Congress MP from Unnao in Uttar Pradesh, also slammed Kejriwal for “frivolous and malicious” allegations of her stashing away `125 crore in a Swiss bank.
Jet Airways asserted its chairman Naresh Goyal had no account in HSBC Geneva, even though he is entitled to have bank accounts outside India as an NRI. “There is no account in the name Naresh Goyal in the Swiss bank as has been alleged. Besides, Naresh Goyal has been an NRI since January 1991. He is entitled to have bank accounts outside India.” The carrier said Goyal is an NRI and had received a routine enquiry letter from the I-T Department regarding a bank account at HSBC Geneva of M/S Tailwinds Ltd, a company based in the Isle of Man. “The existence of the company M/S Tailwinds is fully disclosed to various departments of the Government of India,” it said.
The Burman brothers of Dabur group said they had opened accounts in foreign banks when they were NRIs and were legally allowed to do so, but denied the charges of levelled by Kejriwal. “It was unfortunate that every person having a foreign bank account is being painted with the same brush.”
“The complete details regarding the remittances have been voluntarily, and as per law, filed with the Income Tax Department, and appropriate taxes paid as applicable,” the statement said.
But HSBC Bank was cautious in its reaction Kejriwal’s attack on alleged money laundering through its Geneva branch saying it takes compliance with the law very seriously.
“HSBC Bank in India notes certain allegations made today. The bank cannot comment on the specific details of the allegations that have been made, which relate to issues in the past. HSBC takes compliance with the law, wherever it operates, very seriously. With a new senior global leadership team and a new strategy in place since last year, HSBC continues to take concrete steps to strengthen compliance, risk management and culture,” the bank said in a statement.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/home/online-channel/360-todays-newspaper/107961-iac-charges-have-more-holes-than-swiss-cheese.html
The issue of black money stashed in foreign banks took centre- stage again on Friday with Arvind Kejriwal 'revealing' big names like Mukesh and Anil Ambani in his latest anti-corruption expose.
Friday's revelations dealt mainly with the money stashed away at the HSBC bank, Geneva. R Vaidyanathan, professor at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, told rediff.com that the first question that needs to be answered is from where did Kejriwal get the details, and unless he does so, these will remain mere allegations.
Professor Vaidyanathan, who has written extensively on the issue, was also part of the team which prepared a paper on black money stashed away at the Swiss Bank.
It was in 2011 that India got data on the accounts of Indians holding illegal wealth in HSBC.
"The pertinent question is from where has this landed today and how did India Against Corruption manage to get it? When India first got the list from HSBC it appeared as though it was France which gave the list. However, it does not appear that the list which came to India had any names on it," Professor Vaidyanathan pointed out.
"Had the French government given us the list then the names would have been on it. The chances of France giving us the list would not arise as we are not covered under the European Union agreement. This would mean that India got a copy of the list from HSBC as the list had no names," he said.
"In the list provided by HSBC, the geographical distribution of the money with account numbers were provided, but there are no names on it. Hence it is extremely important that Kejriwal explains the source," he added.
"Now assuming Mukesh Ambani was the account holder, then the details of his holdings could be provided only by his handling officer in the bank. For a person like Mukesh Ambani, the handling officer would be at the level of a CEO of the bank, and it is unlikely that he would share such information with individuals," he noted.
"The other source could be the Income Tax department, which has every chance of having such details. Did someone from there hand over the information to IAC or was it someone from the government? This Kejriwal would have to answer in order to give more credit to his expose," he said.
"The other nation with details of HSBC is Greece. This list was provided to Greece under the EU agreement. However, in that list there were just names but no amount had been mentioned. The only person having proper data would be the handling officer of the respective account holder," he reiterated.
In 2011 the Government of India got the details that there were 782 Indians who had an account with HSBC. The government, however, refused to divulge any more information on the same, stating that it would publish a white paper on the same.
The HSBC is already under the scanner in India after reports had suggested that crime syndicates and drug cartels had transacted with this bank. A full-fledged inquiry is on by the Reserve Bank of India and the Revenue Intelligence Wing, which in its preliminary findings discovered that persons within the bank had helped create accounts in the name of dummy firms.
http://us.mg6.mail.yahoo.com/neo/launch?.rand=9jt2jlsvt41a9
Published: November 10, 2012 02:33 IST | Updated: November 10, 2012 02:55 IST
‘HSBC arranged for opening of accounts abroad and withdrawal from Delhi itself’
Gargi Parsai
The Hindu India Against Corruption members, Arvind Kejriwal, Prashant Bhushan and Shanti Bhushan addressing the media on money stashed in Swiss banks, in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: V.V.Krishnan
Three from the list of 700, which was shared by France, disclose bank’s modus operandi
India Against Corruption (IAC) released on Friday “the modus operandi” for transfer of undisclosed funds to Swiss banks as disclosed in the statements of three persons who had opened accounts in Dubai, Zurich and Geneva with HSBC Bank. They were named in a list of 700, which was shared by the French government in a compact disc with the Indian government last year.
The names of the 10 VIPs, including the Ambanis, Congress MP Anu Tandon, Jet Airways chief Naresh Goyal and the Burman brothers of the Dabur Group, were among the 700 whose names were not revealed by the government. The accounts held by them pertained to 2006.
IAC members Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan said Parminder Singh Kalra and Praveen Sawhney, who gave their statements, were based in Delhi, while the third person, Vikram Dhirani, was from Ghaziabad.
The persons, who were questioned under Section 132 (4)/133A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, revealed the modus operandi of the “underground banking” system or the ‘hawala’ network (money transferred but not moved).
As per the papers released by IAC at a press conference here, Mr. Dhirani said in his deposition that he had opened an account with HSBC in Dubai in 2005 and closed it in 2006. A bank representative came to him in Delhi to open an account. He did not travel to Dubai for opening or operating it. The formalities was completed in Delhi. He agreed that a person authorised by bank officials would collect the cash from him, which would show up in his HSBC account in Dubai. After the money was deposited, Mr. Dhirani was given a confirmation. However, no document was given.
IAC said the statement revealed that Mr. Dhirani told income tax officials that he had deposited about Rs. 12 crore in alleged unaccounted income in the Dubai account over a period of time. The account was closed in 2006, and the money was withdrawn and given to him in Delhi. Neither did he go to Dubai to collect the cash, nor did he arrange for his representative to take the cash on his behalf. “The bank officials arranged for delivery of cash… in India.”
According to IAC, Mr. Kalra opened an account with HSBC, Zurich, on the advice of a Swiss investment consultant based in Zurich. To make deposits of undisclosed money to the tune of Rs. 8 crore-Rs. 9 crore, he gave the cash in instalments to a person in Delhi. Every time, a different person came to collect the cash for being remitted in the Zurich branch of HSBC. The account was closed in 2008-09 even while he remained in Delhi.
“The statement shows,” Mr. Kejriwal said, “that bank officials are providing illegal channels for transfer of cash from their client account-holder in Delhi to Zurich and vice versa.”
He said Mr. Sawhney, who had opened an account with HSBC, Geneva, told income tax officials that his father had transferred $ 1.8 million to this account. “Regarding the modus operandi for withdrawal of money, Mr. Sawhney said he used to call the bank officials in Geneva who would arrange for delivery of cash in India through their agents in the hawala channel. All discussions with the bank officials were on the phone. Every time he asked for cash, a different person used to come to deliver it and he knew none of them.”
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/hsbc-arranged-for-opening-of-accounts-abroad-and-withdrawal-from-delhi-itself/article4082261.ece?homepage=true&css=print
Centre should reveal names of Swiss bank account holders: BJP
SATURDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 2012 00:13 PNS | NEW DELHI
The BJP on Friday demanded the Government to release the names of 700 persons holding illegitimate accounts in foreign countries.
“Government should tell what it has done to bring back black money. It should also now make public all the 700 names of account holders given by the French Government. You
cannot pick and choose some names,” BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.
The party also patted its back for having first raised the issue during 2009 Lok Sabha elections and pooh-poohed the Congress for making fun of its leader LK Advani when he raked up the issue then.
Seeking an investigation into the whole HSBC affair, the BJP leader said her party would raise this issue in the
forthcoming winter session of Parliament. Asked about Congress MP Annu Tandon having a Swiss account, BJP leaders said their MPs had submitted affidavits to their respective heads (Speaker and Chairman) in Parliament and challenged the ruling party legislators to do the same.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/home/online-channel/360-todays-newspaper/107962-centre-should-reveal-names-of-swiss-bank-account-holders-bjp.html
IAC charges have more holes than Swiss cheese!
SATURDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 2012 00:12 PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | NEW DELHI
The Ambani brothers, Jet Airways, the Dabur Group and Congress MP Annu Tandon have rejected allegations by Arvind Kejriwal that they held Swiss bank accounts and parked black money in HSBC Bank in Geneva.
Refuting the charges levelled by Indian Against Corruption (IAC), Mukesh Ambani-headed Reliance Industries Ltd said neither RIL or Mukesh have or had any “illegitimate” accounts anywhere in the world.
“As part of normal business, international subsidiaries of RIL deal with several global banks including HSBC. These accounts are fully compliant with all regulations and are
disclosed in their appropriate jurisdictions and in India. The continued tirade of baseless allegations being made by IAC against us appears to be instigated by vested interests,” an RIL statement said.
In a separate statement, the Anil Ambani-headed Reliance Group denied all allegations made by Kejriwal. “Anil D Ambani had no bank accounts with HSBC in Geneva,” it said. The
statement said it is “regrettable that such baseless allegations are being made by IAC at the behest of vested interests.”
Annu Tandon, Congress MP from Unnao in Uttar Pradesh, also slammed Kejriwal for “frivolous and malicious” allegations of her stashing away `125 crore in a Swiss bank.
Jet Airways asserted its chairman Naresh Goyal had no account in HSBC Geneva, even though he is entitled to have bank accounts outside India as an NRI. “There is no account in the name Naresh Goyal in the Swiss bank as has been alleged. Besides, Naresh Goyal has been an NRI since January 1991. He is entitled to have bank accounts outside India.” The carrier said Goyal is an NRI and had received a routine enquiry letter from the I-T Department regarding a bank account at HSBC Geneva of M/S Tailwinds Ltd, a company based in the Isle of Man. “The existence of the company M/S Tailwinds is fully disclosed to various departments of the Government of India,” it said.
The Burman brothers of Dabur group said they had opened accounts in foreign banks when they were NRIs and were legally allowed to do so, but denied the charges of levelled by Kejriwal. “It was unfortunate that every person having a foreign bank account is being painted with the same brush.”
“The complete details regarding the remittances have been voluntarily, and as per law, filed with the Income Tax Department, and appropriate taxes paid as applicable,” the statement said.
But HSBC Bank was cautious in its reaction Kejriwal’s attack on alleged money laundering through its Geneva branch saying it takes compliance with the law very seriously.
“HSBC Bank in India notes certain allegations made today. The bank cannot comment on the specific details of the allegations that have been made, which relate to issues in the past. HSBC takes compliance with the law, wherever it operates, very seriously. With a new senior global leadership team and a new strategy in place since last year, HSBC continues to take concrete steps to strengthen compliance, risk management and culture,” the bank said in a statement.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/home/online-channel/360-todays-newspaper/107961-iac-charges-have-more-holes-than-swiss-cheese.html
Posted 4 days ago by Srinivasan Kalyanaraman
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2012/11/swiss-banks-as-moneylaunderers-and.html
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