Black Money Monster: Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday told the Rajya
Sabha that the government had initiated action to bring back
unaccounted money stashed in banks abroad.
In a brief response to a question by Prakash Javdekar of the Bharatiya
Janata Party on the promise during the election campaign to get back
the money within 100 days, Dr. Singh said that “action has already
been started” by his government.
Dr. Singh referred to the statement of Finance Minister Pranab
Mukherjee on Wednesday while responding to the debate on the Finance
Bill. The issue dominated the election campaign, with both the
Congress and the BJP taking a tough stand.
Mr. Mukherjee told the House action was taken within 100 days. The
country, he said, was going to accept the code prescribed by G-8
countries by which the exchange of information would take place and
the legal framework adopted for the avoidance of double taxation. At
present, India had double taxation avoidance treaty with nearly 100
countries, he said.
The Finance Minister said every country had its own set of rules and
countries like Switzerland had their own banking secrecy rules.
However, in the context of the financial crisis, Switzerland had
agreed to share information provided there was a legal framework and
proof that such information was needed for tax collection and not any
other purpose.
“Therefore, action to bring back the money, which has been stashed
away, is also being taken,” the Minister said.
...and I am Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
Legal Correspondent
New Delhi: The Union government has described as ‘misconceived’ and
‘politically motivated’ the petition filed by the former Union Law
Minister, Ram Jethmalani, and five others for a direction to bring
back Rs.70,00,000 crore illegally hoarded in Swiss and other foreign
banks.
The affidavit, filed by Priya V.K. Singh, Director in the Department
of Revenue, said: “There are no authentic figures for the amount of
monies lying in those bank accounts. The petition presumably pertains
to monies lying in foreign accounts, which are exclusive of lawful and
legitimate deposits which can be made by both Indian residents and non-
resident Indians.”
However, with regard to the money allegedly lying in various foreign
banks, the Centre was constantly alive to the need to be able to
retrieve information and, towards this end, initiatives had been taken
continuously by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during the G-20 summit,
the affidavit said.
The Centre said the issues raised in the petition pertained to policy,
regulation, economic affairs, international cooperation and political
leadership and did not qualify for examination by standards of
judicial review.
Referring to an article, by Raja Vaidyanathan in ‘Eternal India’,
relied on by the petitioners, the Centre said: “Mr. Vaidyanathan is a
member of the Task Force constituted by the Bharatiya Janata Party,
which was asked to submit an interim report on “steps to be taken by
the Indian Government” to bring back ‘stashed funds’.
The Task Force of four members includes R. Gurumurthy and Mahesh
Jethmalani, presently contesting the elections on behalf of the BJP.”
Under a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) India had with the
Swiss Confederation, information could be exchanged but “the
contracting states are not under an obligation to carry out
administrative measures at variance with their regulations or supply
particulars not procurable under their legislation,” the Centre said.
In the past, the competent Swiss authority consistently refused to
share bank particulars on the ground that information on deposits of
Indian residents was not necessary for the application of the DTAA but
was required only for the enforcement of Indian internal tax laws and
that such information was not at its disposal under Swiss laws in the
normal course of tax administration.
The government of India already approached the Swiss government
seeking renegotiation of Article on exchange of information under the
DTAA. Under the circumstances, the Centre acted with the utmost
expedition, the affidavit said.
The case will come up for hearing on Monday.
bademiyansubhanallah
Legal Correspondent
New Delhi: Former Union Law Minister and senior advocate Ram
Jethmalani and five other eminent personalities on Tuesday moved the
Supreme Court for a direction to the Centre and the Reserve Bank of
India to take immediate steps to bring back Rs.70,00,000 crore
illegally stashed away in Swiss banks.
A three-judge Bench of Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, Justices P.
Sathasivam and J.M. Panchal directed the matter to be included in
Wednesday’s ‘mentioning list’ after senior counsel Anil Divan pressed
for early hearing in view of the importance of the petition.
The petitioners, who included Gopal Sharman, Jalbala Vaidya, K.P.S.
Gill, Prof. B.B. Dutt and Subhash Kashyap, submitted that according to
reports, between 2002 and 2006 an estimated Rs.70 lakh crore had been
siphoned off from India and parked in foreign bank accounts.
The Indian government had not taken any steps to seize such funds and
to prosecute and punish the guilty persons, they said.
“This colossal failure to enforce the law and get back the stolen
property of the Indian nation is due to the fact that influential
politicians in most of the political parties are involved in the
offences in question. The Indian people have been deprived of assets
which if available would substantially contribute to developmental
work in India and to the aim of removing poverty,” they said, adding
that these facts were known to the government of India. P.
Chidambaram, who was the Finance Minister, had publicly acknowledged
that he was in the know of all these facts and as far as the
petitioners knew, the only action taken so far was a communication
alleged to have been made by the Minister to L.K. Advani, the Leader
of the Opposition.
“Public servants and governments have clearly demonstrated their
intention not only to be apathetic but also to actively shield this
blatant dacoity of national wealth by influential people. The
intervention of the Supreme Court is called for since the poor people
of India who have no access to the legal system and who are too
numerous to be identified can only obtain relief through public
spirited individuals like the petitioners,” they said.
They urged the apex court to direct the Centre, the RBI and the SEBI
to disclose facts which had come to their knowledge on this issue; to
direct the Centre to apply to the foreign banks, more particularly the
UBS Bank, Switzerland, for freezing such accounts and to issue orders
from time to time so that investigation was not suppressed.
bademiyansubhanallah
By J. Venkatesan
NEW DELHI, DEC. 20. The Election and Other Related Laws (Amendment)
Bill, 2001, as approved by the Union Cabinet on Tuesday, is intended
to eliminate the influence of money power and black money support in
elections to Parliament and State Assemblies.
As the Bill could not be introduced in the winter session of
Parliament, it will now be introduced during the Budget session.
Pursuant to a decision of an all-party meeting held on May 22, 1998 to
discuss proposals on electoral reforms, the Government set up a
committee under the chairmanship of late Indrajit Gupta.
In its report, the committee had recommended State funding of
elections to eliminate the influence of money power and the raising of
funds in the name of elections by political parties and their leaders.
The Bill incorporates the major recommendations of the report.
The salient features of the Bill are : The Representation of the
People Act, 1951 may be suitably amended to allow companies, other
than Government companies, to make donations to political parties.
Similar donations could be made by individuals and other juridical
persons but no donation would be received from foreign source as
defined in the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act.
Public sector undertakings and other like bodies which are funded by
the Government wholly or partly including local bodies will also not
be eligible to give donation.
In computing the amount of income tax on the total income of an Indian
company with which it is chargeable for any assessment year, the
amount contributed directly or indirectly to political party or for
any political purpose may be allowed as a deduction from the amount of
income tax as computed. Similar tax relief may be allowed to
individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs) and certain other
entities or juridical persons.
The expenditure incurred on general party campaign by leaders of
political parties on account of travel by air or otherwise shall not
be deemed to be expenditure in connection with elections incurred or
authorised by a candidate of that political party.
The treasurer of a political party shall prepare a report of donations
and submit it to the Election Commission. If he fails to submit a
report, the party shall not be entitled to any tax relief which is
allowed under the Income Tax Act.
The accounts in respect of donations shall be audited by an auditor
approved by the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India once in a
financial year to determine admissible expenditure.
The Election Commission shall, on the basis of the past performance of
the political party, during elections, allocate equitable sharing of
time on cable television network and other electronic network and
other electronic media and such allocation of time will be binding on
all political parties.
The Commission may lay down a code of conduct for cable operators and
electronic media, who shall abide by such a code and any failure to
observe the code may become part of the licensing conditions.
Provisions may be made for free supply of copies of electoral rolls
and identity slips of electors to the candidates and such other
materials as may be prescribed.
bademiyansubhanallah
By Our Special Correspondent
Justice N. Venkatachala, Lok Ayukta of Karnataka (centre), with Hari
Jai Singh, president, All-India Editors Guild (left) and Justice K.
Jayachandra Reddy, chairman, Press Council of India, at a seminar in
Bangalore on Saturday.
BANGALORE SEPT. 27. The president of All-India Editors' Guild, Hari
Jaisingh, today said that the battle against corruption and black
money operation in India had to be a long-drawn-out
affair.``Corruption in India is fast becoming a way of life, a way of
thinking and a way of functional `adharma' in the polity.'' The danger
to the country's democracy and freedom of the press came from the
growing power of mafia and black money.
Speaking at a seminar on ``Media's support to Lok Ayukta in
eradication of corruption amongst public servants'' here, Mr. Jaisingh
said black money had become more pervasive than ``white,'' open or
official economy.
Corruption was part of the drift in the polity. The real beneficiaries
in the ongoing drift were black-marketers, smugglers, criminals, anti-
social elements, unscrupulous traders and businessmen, and the
opportunists among officials and politicians.
According to a Social Watch India report, there were 700 legislators
with criminal records. The system had been tampered with to the
advantage of those at the helm and their collaborators. The nexus of a
section of politicians with criminals, of criminals with a section of
policemen, and a section of bureaucrats with the mafia at different
levels had vitiated the atmosphere, he said.
Though the N.N. Vohra committee had given concrete examples of such
collaborations, the report was gathering dust.
Stating that all was not lost as yet, Mr. Jaisingh said the nation was
still vibrant and the people, the media, and the judiciary were
reasonably vigilant. There was a need to build up public pressure
through credible information.
The press had reported cases of miscarriage of justice. It had exposed
the wrongs perpetrated on the weaker section by feudal lords and
authorities. Administrative and electoral reforms and a vigilant press
and people hold the key to building a comparatively cleaner polity.
The people's right to information, simplification of rules and
procedures, and strict enforcement of law would help create a
corruption-free environment. ``Democracy has to be seen as a potent
weapon to fight corruption.''
Mr. Jaisingh the steps taken by the Lok Ayukta in Karnataka to curb
corruption. Unlike in other States, the Lokayukta, headed by Justice
N. Venkatachala, was functioning very effectively, he said.
The Chairman of the Press Council of India, Justice K. Jayachandra
Reddy, said corruption was always associated with power, and it was an
enemy of development. No system of the state was free from corruption.
India was ranked 72 in the list of 92 most corrupt countries.
``It is startling that the Indian citizen is paying 40 per cent more
for the power he was using because of corruption.'' The fight against
corruption should be given a national priority, he said.
The ADGP of Karnataka Lok Ayukta, B.N.P. Albuquerque, welcomed the
guests.
The Lok Ayukta, Mr. Justice N. Venkatachala, introduced the guests.
D. Krishnappa, Registrar, Karnataka Lok Ayukta, proposed a vote of
thanks.
The Karnataka Lok Ayukta had organised the seminar.
bademiyansubhanallah
By Our Staff Reporter
NIZAMABAD, JULY 11. The Assembly Speaker, K. R. Suresh Reddy, has said
black money was a major problem area in the country, causing great
concern to policy-makers and financial administrators for decades.
Delivering the keynote address at a one-day seminar on `Union budget
and Finance bill 2004' organised by the Nizamabad Continuing
Professional Education chapter of the Southern Indian Regional Council
(SIRC) of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India here on
Sunday, Mr. Reddy said, "Black money is almost crippling our economy.
We have to find meaningful ways to solve this problem at the
earliest." The Speaker also inaugurated the Nizamabad chapter of the
SIRC.
Mr. Reddy said no Government was infallible and no tax law foolproof.
He said chartered accountants could help the Government plug loopholes
in tax laws. He said chartered accountants, with specialised knowledge
in financial matters and skill in tax laws, are were the "right
persons" to advise the Government about ways of improving its
revenue.
The Speaker said that at every stage of financial administration, like
the pre-budget exercise, post-budget introspection, preparation of tax
laws or amendment of financial legislation, the Government and society
required in-depth research by experts in the profession. He said
chartered accountants could bridge the gulf with expert knowledge.
He said "the days of burdening certain classes with taxes and
cushioning others with subsidies are gone. Now the Government is
forced to achieve an equilibrium, both in taxing citizens and in
subsidising the poor."
He said it was in this context that Governments needed the services of
financial experts.
The Government's responsibilities, Mr. Reddy said, were increasing by
the day. The revenues, however, were not so elastic. The Government,
with limited resources at its disposal, was forced to cope. There
ought to be a balance between increasing social demands and limited
financial resources, he said.
The Chairman of SIRC of ICAI, J. Venkateswarulu, and G. V. V.
Satyanarayana from Vijayawada, Devaraja Reddy from Hyderabad, and M.
R. Vikram from Hyderabad, spoke. The seminar placed on record the
services rendered by eminent Chartered Accountant, M. Simhachalam.
Speakers complimented Mr. Simhachalam for completing 50 years in the
profession.
The Convener of the Nizamabad chapter, D. Venkat Ramana and the Deputy
convener, Gopaldas Jhawar, spoke. Delegates from Nizamabad,
Karimnagar, Warangal, Adilabad, Hyderabad and Nanded participated.
bademiyansubhanallah
NEW DELHI, MARCH 4. The Deputy Prime Minister, L.K. Advani, today
asked all political parties to ponder over the issue of poll
expenses.
``Yes it (use of black money) is there. It is not a good thing. It is
a question which is related not merely to politics, but to economy
also,'' he said in an interview to "Aaj Tak".
Asked from where parties managed finances to meet the heavy expenses
and whether they had to make certain compromises, Mr. Advani said no
compromise was required. Rather, he said, parties should think over
all these issues.
Asked about the estimate of poll expenses, he said democracy was a
costly system of governance. ``Therefore, States should take the
responsibility of defraying the expenditure of elections.'' — PTI
bademiyansubhanallah
By Alok Mukherjee
NEW DELHI JAN. 31. With an unprecedented inflow of $ 5.7 billion
foreign exchange into the country in just one and half months,
speculation is gaining ground that "black money'' stashed away by
Indians abroad may finally be making its way back to the country,
though in instalments.
Data released by the Reserve Bank shows that India's total foreign
exchange reserves at $ 72.4 billion came about because of the increase
in the inflow of $ 18.3 billion between April 1, 2002 and January 17,
2003. Of this $ 18.3 billion inflow, $ 12.6 billion came in during
April-November 2002 whereas the comparable inflow during April-
November 2001 was only $ 4.5 billion. Moreover, in the one and half
months between December 1 and January 17 this year, another $ 5.7
billion more came in, more than the entire inflow of the eight months
of 2001.
The Reserve Bank has also woken up to the unprecedented phenomenon but
has stopped short of saying that this was "illegal'' money returning
home. Instead, it said that part of the reason could be that "export
receipts which may have been withheld earlier due to expectation of
further depreciation of the rupee are also being realised faster as
the rupee has appreciated.'' But with exports not showing any
extraordinary increases in recent times, experts feel that faster
realisation of recent export receipts could not be the sole reason for
the bulge in reserves.
Admitting that the large improvement in the external position is
"unprecedented in India's own history,'' the RBI listed the major
source of accretion in reserves between April and November 2002 to a $
2.5 billion surplus in current account balance and a net capital
account balance of $ 8 billion. Interestingly, it is not the non-
resident Indians (NRIs) who are contributing to the surge since net
NRI deposits are actually down this fiscal year till November to $ 2.1
billion against $ 2.2 billion that came in during April-November
2001.
There are two heads in the RBI table which show an unusual increase.
One is `other capital' which has swelled from 2.5 billion in April-
November 2001 to $ 3.8 billion in the same months of the current
fiscal. The other bulge is on account of valuation changes which
increased the reserves by $ 2.1 billion this year whereas the
contribution of this head was only $ 0.4 billion in 2001.
One major reason for the possible return of the stashed black money
abroad could be the global tightening of screws on "secret accounts''
in the wake of the international crackdown on terrorist funding.
The RBI is, however, comfortable with the current situation. According
to its analysis, a substantial portion of the fresh accretion in
reserves has been by way of current account surplus (20 per cent), non-
debt creating capital flows (40 per cent) and by way of currency
valuation (17 per cent). The balance (23 per cent) has come in by way
of debt creating capital inflows and includes NRI deposits, "other
assets'' under banking capital and short-term loans. The RBI, thus,
feels that since the debt creating inflows are significantly low, it
may be concluded that the cost of accretion to reserves is not very
significant.
Sid Harth
India to seek info on some cases from Swiss banks
STAFF WRITER 23:42 HRS IST
New Delhi, Aug 24 (PTI) A day after Swiss banks said it will not allow
India to 'fish' for details about illegal money stashed in their
banks, Government of India Monday night said it was not interested in
getting information on all secret accounts held by Indians but will
pursue specific cases.
The Indian response to the stand by the Swiss Bankers Association(SBA)
that it will not allow "name-fishing expeditions" came from India
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee even as the government came under
attack from the opposition for not "properly" making efforts to
unearth black money parked in Switzerland.
"They (Swiss Bankers Association) have not refused (to divulge
information). They have suggested they are not for fishing and we are
also not interested in fishing their whole list (of bank accounts),"
Mukherjee told reporters.
Sid Harth
India must get Swiss accounts details: Rajnath
August 24, 2009 18:58 IST
CommentWith the Swiss government's refusal to share information about
Indians holding accounts in its banks, BJP president Rajnath Singh on
Monday said India should mount diplomatic pressure on that country to
get the details.
"I think the Indian government should build up diplomatic pressure on
Switzerland [ Images ] so that the black money of whichever country is
deposited there can be exposed," Singh said.
The BJP had made the stashing away of illegal money by Indians in
Swiss banks and other tax havens abroad a poll issue during the recent
Lok Sabha elections. It had promised to bring back the money if voted
to power and said the amount would be used to fund several welfare
schemes.
This had led even the Congress to announce that it would take steps in
this direction within the first 100 days of assuming power.
However, Swiss government refused to share the details. "India cannot
simply throw its telephone book at Switzerland and ask if any of these
people have a bank account here," a top official at Swiss Bankers
Association told PTI from Basel on Sunday.
Singh said if the American government could get the names so could we.
Germany [ Images ] and Ireland have also succeeded in getting names of
account holders from their country.
Meanwhile, the CPI(M) said the government was responsible for getting
details of Indians who have stashed away illegal money there.
"When the US government can get the list of persons (who have
illegally stashed money in Swiss banks), why can't the Indian
government…It is the responsibility of the government. How can there
be double standards," CPI(M) Politburo member Brinda Karat [ Images ]
said.
Maintaining that "lakhs of crores of rupees" have been kept in the
Swiss banks, she said the Left parties had demanded action by the
government on the issue.
"We do not have any authentic knowledge about what has been going on.
In the Parliament, the Finance Minister had made a categoric statement
that the government was talking to the Swiss authorities," Karat said,
adding that if this money could be brought back to India, it could be
used for various developmental activities.
She was replying to questions on reports that Swiss banks were saying
India was not welcome there on a name-fishing expedition. "India
cannot simply throw its telephone book at Switzerland and ask if any
of these people have a bank account here," a top official at Swiss
Bankers Association had said from Basel.
© Copyright 2009 PTI. All rights reserved. Republication or
redistribution of PTI content, including by framing or similar means,
is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent.
Sid Harth
Swiss bank money: India's approach is all wrong
Vicky Nanjappa
It was a slap on the face for the Indian government when it was told
by the Swiss banks that India was not welcome on a 'name-fishing'
expedition.
According to various studies that have been conducted including the
one by the Global Financial Integrity, approximately Rs 692,328 crore
(Rs 6923.28 billion) Indian money is stashed away in the Swiss banks
alone.
R Vaidyanathan, a professor of finance in the Indian Institute of
Management, Bangalore, who has conducted detail studies on hidden
Indian money in the Swiss banks, says getting the names of the people
is not as easy as it is being made out to be.
In this interview with Senior Associate Editor Vicky Nanjappa,
Vaidyanathan explains what India should do to successfully unearth the
identity of these people. Excerpts
The Swiss banks have warned India against any name-fishing expedition.
Your views please.
(Laughs). I don't find anything new about it. The Swiss banks have
always maintained that you cannot approach them and ask for random
names. You just cannot go to them with one ordinary list and ask for
details.
Do you think that India has been addressing this issue in the right
manner?
I am afraid no. This is just not the way to do it.
How should, then, India approach this problem? You yourself had once
said that bringing that money back would solve a lot of our internal
problems.
The Swiss banks expect us to approach them on the basis of the double
taxation treaty. We need to be specific.
First we need to identify the people, ready a case file, find out the
antecedents of the person and give them solid proof as to how these
persons have brought in this money.
India, on the other hand, handed them a directory of
Recently Swiss bank UBS AG turned over details of 4,450 secret
accounts to the US Internal Revenue Service. Was it possible because
US is a super power?
Not at all. The fact that it is a super power has no bearing on the
manner in which the Swiss banks function. The US has not got the
financial details of the persons they wanted overnight.
They spent years investigating the suspects, then after collecting
sufficient proof they approached the local courts.
When the US authorities presented their case before the court, they
provided specific details of travel log, the persons that were
contacted in the past several years, their entire source of income and
also on how it has been generated.
Just look at how much exhaustive work has gone into it. India must
adopt the same pattern and not just go to the Swiss bank with a sheet
of paper and ask for names.
Has India ever been successful in fishing out details from the Swiss
banks?
I am afraid no... Yes on one occasion, they had asked for the details
of one Hassan Ali. We all know how that expedition of India's went.
Our case was returned on the ground that we had submitted forged
documents. I have not heard anything since then.
Do you think the Indian government is committed to the cause of
getting back illegal money stashed away in the Swiss banks?
The President of India (Pritibha Patil) during her address in the
Parliament had spoken about this issue. However, none have spoken of a
time frame.
At the moment it seems that the government has not done its homework.
A political will is required in such cases and unless that it there, I
am afraid nothing is going to happen.
The Indian government needs to take up this issue on a top priority
basis. But judging by how things are moving this is not the case. I
feel that there are certain vested interests which are working against
this cause and this seems to have an overriding effect on the Indian
government.
This issue was first raised by the Bhratiya Janata Party. Do you think
a BJP government would have addressed this issue better?
I don't know and I really cannot say. I don't want to mix this issue
with politics. For me the only concern is that the money should be
brought back to save the Indian economy. It is definitely not a party-
based issue.
Why should countries change according to the wishes of the Swiss
banks. Don't you think it is easier if the Swiss banks change their
attitude instead?
Well, that sounds good. But it is a 350-year practice and it has not
changed. What more do I say?
But the world is not the same it used to be 350 years back. There are
more terror funds in the Swiss bankn now. Don't you think it is
irresponsible on their part to be so choosy and difficult about the
whole thing?
I agree that a lot has changed. I do get a feeling that in due course
there would also be a change in attitude of the Swiss authorities.
Considerable amount of international pressure has also been building
up on this issue which is making the banks rethink about their mode of
operation.
However I must add here that following the international pressure, lot
of money is now being withdrawn from the Swiss banks and transferred
to Singapore.
Sid Harth
Don't come fishing for account details, Swiss banks tell India
August 24, 2009 09:10 IST
Swiss banks may have turned over client details to the US, but they
have said India is not welcome there on a name-fishing expedition.
The Swiss laws and OECD's Model Tax Convention do not permit fishing
expeditions, in other words, the indiscriminate trawling through bank
accounts in the hope of finding something interesting.
"This means that India cannot simply throw its telephone book at
Switzerland [ Images ] and ask if any of these people have a bank
account here," a top official at Swiss Bankers Association said from
Basel.
The secrecy shield provided by Swiss banks has always been a big issue
in India, including during the campaign for this year's general
elections, and the government recently said that it had approached
Switzerland seeking details about bank accounts held by Indians there.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee [ Images ] had recently informed
Parliament that the government was committed to unearthing black money
within and outside the country.
"Swiss authorities, I am told, have agreed for negotiations (on the
issue)... We have already taken it (the issue of black money) not only
with Swiss authorities but other nations as well," Mukherjee said.
Last week, the US reached an agreement with Switzerland, under which
top Swiss bank UBS AG turned over details of 4,450 secret accounts to
the Internal Revenue Service.
Asked how would India's request be handled, especially in the backdrop
of the UBS settlement, SBA's head of international communications
James Nason said that "the key for the exchange of information in tax
matters is the Double Taxation Agreement between Switzerland and
India".
The official noted that Swiss bank-client confidentiality has never
been 100 per cent absolute and Swiss legislators have built in
provisions for it to be lifted during criminal investigations and also
in many civil cases and it has also evolved over time.
SBA, however, asserted that the basic principles remain intact even
following the recent agreement with the US and "the privacy of bank
clients innocent of any wrongdoing remains protected and privacy
remains the natural state of affairs".
"No one - not even the Swiss tax authorities - has an automatic right
of forced entry into a client's bank account without first satisfying
the requirements and conditions stipulated by Swiss law."
Switzerland has Double Taxation Agreement with over 70 countries,
including India. "There have long been well-established legal
procedures under which Switzerland provides international legal
assistance in criminal cases and in tax matters and any country may
lodge a request for such assistance through the official channels,"
Nason said.
SBA noted that exchange of information on tax matters takes place
under the terms of the Double Taxation Agreement and these are being
"currently revised to incorporate the OECD standard on the exchange of
information in tax matters according to the OECD's own Model Tax
Convention".
© Copyright 2009 PTI. All rights reserved. Republication or
redistribution of PTI content, including by framing or similar means,
is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent.
...and I am Sid Harth
Sid Harth
OECD estimates $11 trillion parked in tax havens
Last updated on: April 03, 2009 13:49 IST
The OECD has estimated that about $11 trillion, more than 10 times the
amount committed by G-20 leaders to revive the world economy, is held
in tax havens, even as it released the black list of non-cooperative
nations.
Estimates of the value of assets held in tax havens range from $1.7
trillion to $11.5 trillion, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation
and Development said while naming Malaysia, the Philippines, Uruguay
and Costa Rica as countries that have not agreed to implement
international tax standards.
Mauritius, country from where large amounts of investments are routed
to India, figures among the nations that have substantially
implemented tax standards.
Among the countries that have committed themselves to the
internationally agreed tax standards but have not yet implemented them
are Singapore, Switzerland [ Images ], Bahamas, Bermuda, British
Virgin Islands, and Cayman islands.
The OECD, which is a grouping of developed nations, released the list
of blacklisted countries soon after the G-20 leaders announced a plan
impose sanctions against tax havens.
"This is the start of the end because country after country is now
signing up to the principles that have been set forward
internationally. The principle is that you got to be prepared to
exchange information about tax," UK prime minister Gorden Brown told
reporters after the summit.
Sid Harth
'Aware of Swiss banks' reluctance in sharing details'
STAFF WRITER 14:46 HRS IST
New Delhi, Aug 24 (PTI) Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said
he has noted reports about reservations Swiss banks have in sharing
client details with India, but did not say what course of action the
government would take.
"I have read in the newspapers", Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee
told reporters, adding that he will look into it.
He was replying to a question about the the Swiss Bankers
Association's stand that India was not welcome on a name- fishing
expedition, although top bank UBS AG agreed to provide details of more
than 4,000 accounts to the US authorities.
"Swiss law and even OECD's Model Tax Convention do not permit fishing
expeditions, in other words, the indiscriminate trawling through bank
accounts in the hope of finding something interesting.
...and I am Sid Harth
Sid Harth
Swiss bank shatters Indian dream of getting info on black money
stashed abroad
www.chinaview.cn 2009-08-24 15:40:18
NEW DELHI, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- India's hope to acquire information
on Indian black money stashed away in Swiss banks has finally
shattered, with the latter refusing on Sunday to reveal any detail,
saying that "Swiss law and tax model convention don't permit name-
fishing expedition" by a third country.
The blow to India came barely a week after Swiss banking giant UBS
AG turned over details of 4,450 secret accounts to the United States,
under an agreement agreed upon by the two.
The refusal by UBS AG has literally shattered India government's
commitment to unearthing black money outside the country -- an issue
that had raised much political heat during the general elections with
the Opposition BJP making it a major poll plank, say political
analysts.
"The Swiss banks have thrown waters on Indian aspirations. India
is not United States. All these commitments before and after the
general elections prove to be hollow now," said political analyst
Professor Ajay Singh.
The Indian government was assuring the country something that is
close to impossible. Why would the Swiss banks break their secrecy
shield for India. The banking business thrives there on black money,
it is said. In the U.S., UBS got into a major financial problem and
they agreed to divulge names only to get out of it," he added.
In fact, Indian Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee recently said in
Parliament that the government initiated a dialogue with Swiss
authorities to obtain details on Indian black money stashed away in
Swiss banks.
"Swiss authorities, I am told, have agreed for negotiations (on
the issue)... We have already taken it (the issue of black money) not
only with Swiss authorities but other nations as well," said
Mukherjee, after the ruling Congress-led United Progressive Alliance
government came to power for the second time in a row.
Mukherjee, at the same time, had also said that the government has
no plans to bring in a new amnesty scheme for tax evaders, pointing
out that in the past there have been complaints that the government
was penalizing the honest tax payer as in every such scheme the normal
rate of tax was reduced.
But, an unnamed top official at Swiss Bankers Association from
Basel told an Indian news agency on Sunday, "Swiss law and even
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Model Tax
Convention don't permit fishing expeditions, in other words, the
indiscriminate trawling through bank accounts in the hope of finding
something interesting. This means that India cannot simply throw its
telephone book at Switzerland and ask if any of these people have a
bank account here."
Eminent political scientist Prof. S.K. Gupta said, "This is it.
The long-awaited hope doesn't exist now, not at all. A study conducted
by a professor of Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore has
revealed that 56 percent of the black money deposited in Swiss Bank
belongs to our Indians. The amount is approximately estimated to be
74,600 billion rupees (around 1,500 billion U.S. dollars). All this
money is believed to belong to people who earned it by indulging in
corruptions. Swiss banks won't betray clients by breaching secrecy
contract to lose business."
According to the estimates, Indian black money in Swiss banks
amount to a sum of about 1,500 billion U.S. dollars. Once this huge
amount of black money and property comes back to India, the entire
foreign debt can be repaid in 24 hours. And, after that the country
will have surplus amount, almost 12 times larger than the foreign
debt, political analysts say.
Delhi-based political science teacher Professor R.K. Choudhury
said, "India has 1.4 trillion U.S dollars more money in Swiss banks
than the rest of the world combined. Some 80,000 Indians travel to
Switzerland every year, of whom 25,000 travel very frequently.
Obviously, these people are not tourists. They must be traveling there
for some other reason. So, corruption will never end and all efforts
by India as usual failed to achieve any results."
Editor: Sun Yunlong
Sid Harth
Oppn BJP wants Govt to increase pressure on Switzerland
Posted On Monday, August 24, 2009
United News of India
New Delhi, Aug 24:
BJP President Rajnath Singh today said the Government should increase
pressure on Switzerland to handover the list of those who had stashed
away their black money in its banks.
Reacting to the rejection by the Swiss authorities of India's request
to provide the list of the secret accounts maintained by Indians in
its banks, Mr Singh said the Government should become more assertive,
as the US had already been provided such list by Swiss banks.
Swiss authorities are reported to have told India that its laws do not
permit fishing expeditions. India could not simply throw its telephone
book at Switzerland and ask if any of the listed had an account in its
banks, they are reported to have told the Government.
The Swiss reply comes just a week after top Swiss bank UBS AG said it
would hand over details of 4,450 secret accounts worth 18 billion
dollars to the US's Internal Revenue Service.
Sid Harth
Govt to look into Swiss banks refusal to share details
PTIMonday, August 24, 2009 20:28 IST Email
New Delhi: The government today said it would look into the refusal by
Swiss banks to share details about money parked by Indians but faced
opposition charges of not "properly" pursuing efforts to unearth the
illegal money stashed in Switzerland.
The BJP also wanted the UPA government to mount diplomatic pressure on
Switzerland to get the details while the Congress said the government
was doing all it can under its jurisdiction to get the black money out
as it was an issue of public interest and concerned the common man.
Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said he has taken note of media
reports about reservations Swiss banks have in sharing client details
with India and that he would look into the matter.
"I have read in the newspapers", Mukherjee told reporters, adding he
will look into it.
BJP president Rajnath Singh said the government should build up
diplomatic pressure on Switzerland so that the black money can be
"exposed."
The CPI(M) said the government was responsible for getting details of
Indians who have stashed away illegal money there.
"When the US government can get the list of persons (who have
illegally stashed money in Swiss banks), why can't the Indian
government...It is the responsibility of the government. How can there
be double standards," CPI(M) Politburo member Brinda Karat said.
JD(U) attacked UPA government accusing it of not "properly" pursuing
the matter withSwiss authorites and "not actually wanting to do it".
"America is powerful and so it got its work done (got information
about account of clients) but India does not actually want to do it at
all... It could have been done had we put pressure on the Swiss
authorities properly," JD (U) president Sharad Yadav said.
Congress spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said "It is a matter concerning
the government and it is seized of the matter. It is an issue of
public interest and concerns the aam aadmi (common man). Government is
doing all it can under its jurisdiction."
"Swiss law and even OECD's Model Tax Convention do not permit fishing
expeditions, in other words, the indiscriminate trawling through bank
accounts in the hope of finding something interesting," Swiss Bankers
Association(SBA) Head of International Communications James Nason had
said.
"This means that India cannot simply throw its telephone book at
Switzerland and ask if any of these people have a bank account here,"
he said.
Rajnath Singh maintained that if the American government could get the
names so could we. Germany and Ireland have also succeeded in getting
names of account holders from their country, he said.
Pranab Mukherjee had recently informed Parliament that the government
was committed to unearthing black money within and outside the
country.
"Swiss authorities, I am told, have agreed for negotiations (on the
issue)... We have already taken it (the issue of black money) not only
with Swiss authorities but other nations as well," Mukherjee had
said.
©2009 PTI. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of PTI
content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly
prohibited without the prior written consent.
...and I am Sid Harth
Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
No flash in PAN: Black economy keeps flourishing
Pradeep Thakur, TNN 24 August 2009, 12:35am IST
NEW DELHI: Mandating the use of PAN (personal account number) for all
high-value transactions was supposed to be an important way of
plugging the black economy. But the I-T department is now discovering
that has not quite happened.
According to the Annual Information Return (AIR) filed with the
government, high-value transactions amounted to more than Rs 55.7 lakh
crore in 2007-08, almost double the Rs 27 lakh crore for the previous
year. But about 30% or roughly 1 million of the 3.3 million
transactions were without PAN being cited.
The department regards many of the high-value transactions as
suspicious. The proportion of cases where PAN is not cited is highest
in property sales of a declared value of Rs 30 lakh or more. Barely
one in four such sellers has provided PAN.
Similarly, almost two-thirds of those who have cash deposits of Rs 10
lakh or more in savings bank accounts have not provided a PAN to the
bank. Over half the credit card transactions of Rs 2 lakh or more have
no PAN tagged to them.
Even more shockingly, of the 3,100 transactions of Rs 5 lakh or more
in RBI bonds, aggregating to Rs 3.52 lakh crore, about 10% were
carried out without mentioning any PAN.
But PAN not being provided is not the only reason the department is
suspicious. It is also because in thousands of cases where a PAN has
been provided, it is unable to trace the transaction back to the
beneficiary.
In some cases this is because the PAN provided has turned out to be
fake. In others, there are two or more PANs being used by the same
person. In one such case, when the I-T department investigated further
it found that the lady holding the two PANs had an income of over Rs
40 crore but had disclosed no income in her return for that year.
Another interesting case is that of a prominent US-based bank. The
data provided by the bank on credit cards it had issued showed that
just four PANs accounted for thousands of crores of rupees of
transactions. On being confronted with this, sources said, the bank
explained it away as a case of faulty data entry.
The department's suspicions are further strengthened by the fact that
the Rs 3.12 crore collected through income and corporate taxes in
2007-08 does not quite square with such a large volume of high-value
transactions.
A thorough investigation and linking of the transactions to the actual
beneficiary could make the treasury richer, it feels. However, the
scale on which the investigations are needed is simply beyond its
capacity given the manpower available, department sources confessed.
This has been conveyed to the government.
The AIRs are routinely reported to the I-T department for further
investigation. The components include cash deposits of Rs 10 lakh and
above in savings bank accounts, purchase and sale of immovable
property above Rs 30 lakh, purchase of bonds and debentures, share
transactions of Rs 5 lakh and above and credit card expenditure of Rs
2 lakh or more.
All information in the AIRs is supposed to be assessed and analysed in
I-T investigations and matched with the I-T return of assessees
against the PAN numbers mentioned in these high value transactions.
Based on the AIRs, the I-T department had been building profiles of
high-net worth individuals for the past three years. The project was
popularly known as 360 degree profiles and included information of
high net worth individuals like politicians, bureaucrats, defence
agents, top corporate executives, businessmen with spectacular growth
in their fortunes and people who lead a flashy lifestyle with no known
sources of earning a livelihood.
QnA: Is our govt fuelling the black economy?
QnA: What is 'black money'?
bademiyansubhanallah
Mukherjee to look into Swiss banks’ reluctance
Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said on Monday that he
would look into the matter of reservations expressed by Swiss banks
about disclosing the details of their Indian clients.
“What can I comment? I have read in the newspapers…I will look into
the matter and discuss the Swiss bankers’ rejection to disclose the
details with authorities in [the] banking sector,” Mr. Mukherjee
said.
He was replying to a question on the stand taken by the Swiss Bankers’
Association (SBA) that India was not welcome to a “name-fishing”
expedition, even as leading Swiss bank UBS AG had agreed to provide
client details of more than 4,000 accounts to the U.S. authorities.
“Fishing expedition”
According to media reports, SBA’s Head of International Communications
James Nason had said: “Swiss law and even OECD’s Model Tax Convention
do not permit fishing expeditions; in other words, the indiscriminate
trawling through bank accounts in the hope of finding something
interesting. This means that India cannot simply throw its telephone
book at Switzerland and ask if any of these people have a bank account
here.”
Negotiations
The secrecy cover provided to clients by Swiss banks has always
remained a major issue of debate in India, both in and outside
Parliament. Participating in a discussion on black money in Parliament
recently, Mr. Mukherjee had informed members that the government was
committed to unearthing the sources of black money within and outside
the country.
“Swiss authorities, I am told, have agreed for negotiations [on the
issue of black money]...We have already taken it [up] not only with
[the] Swiss authorities but other nations as well,” he had said.
Double Taxation pact
Even as the U.S. entered into an agreement with Switzerland under
which UBS is to furnish details of 4,450 secret accounts to the
American authorities, with regard to India, the SBA executive said:
“The key for the exchange of information in tax matters is the Double
Taxation Agreement between Switzerland and India.”
Sid Harth
Black money case: India to talk with Switzerland
PTI
New Delhi, August 25, 2009
In the midst of a row over tainted money stashed in banks in
Switzerland, the government on Tuesday said it will begin talks with
that country in December for amending the relevant treaty and it was
not interested in a "roving inquiry".
"We are pursuing with the Swiss authorities and after our persuasion
they have agreed to discuss and begin the negotiations on the
amendment of the avoidance of double taxation agreement in respect of
the exchange of information."
"That first round of talks will take place sometime in December,"
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said.
The Swiss Banks Association had said Swiss law and even OECD's Model
Tax Convention do not permit fishing expeditions, in other words, the
indiscriminate trawling through bank accounts in the hope of finding
something interesting.
"This means that India cannot simply throw its telephone book at
Switzerland
and ask if any of these people have a bank account here," SBA Head of
International Communications James Nason had said.
"We are fully aware of and we have no intention of having any roving
enquiry," Mukherjee said, adding that it would pursue the matter on
the basis of specific information to help the tax authorities nail the
defaulters.
Switzerland had last week reached an agreement with the US to give
that country's Internal Revenue Service details of 4,450 clients who
Washington suspected of evading taxes.
bademiyansubhanallah
Aug 26, 2009
Corruption hurting India
'Corruption 'hurts our economic growth in a variety of ways, apart
from hindering our efforts to build a just, fair and equitable
society' said Mr Singh. -- PHOTO: AFP
NEW DELHI - ENDEMIC corruption is harming India's reputation overseas,
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Wednesday, warning that foreign
investors were being scared away by the 'menace'.
'Pervasive corruption in our country tarnishes our image. It also
discourages investors, who expect fair treatment and transparent
dealings,' Mr Singh told a gathering of state anti-corruption
officials in New Delhi.
Corruption 'hurts our economic growth in a variety of ways, apart from
hindering our efforts to build a just, fair and equitable society', he
added.
Mr Singh urged authorities to investigate swiftly alleged wrongdoing
'without fear or favour', so that India's much-maligned bureaucracy
could 'shed its slothful and lethargic image'.
The government has established 71 new courts belonging to the Central
Bureau of Investigation, India's top federal investigating agency, to
ensure the speedy conclusion of anti-corruption trials, he said.
'High-level corruption should be pursued aggressively. There is a
pervasive feeling today in our country that while petty cases get
tackled quickly, the big fish often escape punishment. This has to
change.'
Mr Singh also lamented the lack of accountability in India's numerous
anti-poverty programs and observed that they often fail to reach their
intended beneficiaries due to fraud.
'The poor are disproportionately hurt because of corruption' which
serves as an impediment to India's goal of inclusive growth, he said.
-- AFP
Sid Harth
PM on corruption: 'Big fish' must not escape punishment
26 Aug 2009, 1236 hrs IST, PTI
NEW DELHI: Asking CBI and state anti- corruption officials to
aggressively pursue "high level corruption", Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh on Wednesday said the perception that "big fish" escape
punishment must change and they should act swiftly and without fear.
Opening a conference of CBI and state anti-corruption bureaux here, he
said there was no single remedy for fighting corruption which has to
be combated at many levels, one of which was making existing systems
less discretionary.
"High-level corruption should be pursued aggressively. There is a
pervasive feeling that while petty cases get tackled quickly, the big
fish escape punishment. This has to change," Singh said.
The Prime Minister said while quick investigation was important and
necessary, it was not sufficient to bring the guilty to book.
"Trials should be conducted expeditiously and judgements delivered
quickly. To begin with the aim should be to conclude the trial in two
years so that punishment could be given to the offenders within a
period of three years or so," he said.
Singh said the government has recently decided to set up 71 new CBI
courts and expected them to function as model courts, hold day-to-day
proceedings and avoid unnecessary adjournments.
The Prime Minister said the world respects Indian democracy, its
plural and secular values, independent judiciary, free press, its
commitment to freedom and peace and its pursuit of equitable and
inclusive growth.
"But pervasive corruption in our country tarnishes our image. It also
discourages investors, who expect fair treatment and transparent
dealings. As the country grows and integrates with the world economy,
corruption continues to be an impediment to harnessing the best
technology and resources," he said.
Singh said the urgent need to combat corruption cannot be over
emphasised as it distorts the rule of law and weakens institutions.
"It hurts our economic growth in a variety of ways apart from
hindering our efforts to build a just, fair and equitable society," he
said.
The Prime Minister said there is a constant refrain in public
discourse that much of what the government provides never reaches the
intended beneficiaries -- whether it is subsidised food grains for the
poor, loans, fertilisers or seeds on concessional terms for small and
marginal farmers or the benefit of employment programmes for the
unemployed.
"This should be a matter of serious concern for all of us
collectively," he said.
Singh said there was no single remedy for fighting corruption and
battle against it has to be fought at many levels.
"The design of development programmes should provide for more
transparency and accountability. Systems and procedures which are
opaque, complicated, centralised and discretionary are a fertile
breeding ground for the evil of corruption. They should be made more
transparent, simple, decentralised and less discretionary," he said.
The two-day 17th biennial conference of CBI, state anti-corruption
bureaux and vigilance agencies is being attended by their heads from
all states and Union Territories.
bademiyansubhanallah
PM urged to ensure clearance of Bihar corruption bill: Nitish
Press Trust of India / Patna August 27, 2009, 12:01 IST
After the Prime Minister's advice to catch the "big fish" to weed out
corruption, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today urged Manmohan
Singh to ensure early assent to a Bihar bill for dealing with corrupt
public servants.
Asserting that it is "high time" for the Centre to step up measures to
weed out corruption from the system, Kumar said, the Prime Minister
must intervene to ensure clearance of the bill already passed by the
two Houses of the state legislature.
The Prime Minister had yesterday asked CBI and state anti-corruption
officials to aggressively pursue "high level corruption" saying the
perception that "big fish" escape punishment must change and they
should act swiftly and without fear.
The Bihar bill, which provides for confiscation of assets of public
servants accumulated by them beyond their known sources of income, has
been pending with the Centre for over five months.
Kumar said he had raised the issue with Union Law Minister M Veerappa
Moily during their recent meeting.
"I can at least boast that Bihar is setting an example by drafting a
bill to crackdown on corrupt officials," the chief minister said.
The state government has also planned speedy trial in cases related to
corruption, he added.
Sid Harth
BANGALORE, August 29, 2009
‘Silence of the majority abetting corruption’
Special Correspondent
Photo: Rajeev Bhatt
India losing revenue of Rs. 92,400 crore a year due to corruption:
Purandeswari
Terming corruption as “anti-national, anti-development and anti-poor,”
Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development D. Purandeswari
on Saturday blamed “a majority of the population which wants to be a
silent witness to corruption” for failing in the national duty of
fighting corruption.
“Fighting corruption is the national duty of every patriotic Indian.
If five crore corrupt elements are ruining the country, the remaining
95 crore people who are either the victims of corruption or silent
witnesses to the pervasive corruption scene are failing in their
duty,” Ms. Purandeswari said at a seminar on “upholding values in
public life” organised in Bangalore by the Rashtriya Navanirmana
Vedike to mark the 83rd birth anniversary of the late chief minister
Ramakrishna Hegde.
“Fighting corruption is the most important need if we want India to
become an economic and military super power and ensure that every
citizen will get his rights as well as a better quality of life,” she
said.
A study conducted by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry had
demonstrated how corruption was anti-development by revealing that the
investment in the country would increase by 2.9 per cent of the GDP
and GDP growth would increase by 1.3 per cent if corruption index
improved by one standard deviation.
According to a rough estimate, India was losing additional investments
to the tune of Rs. 63,800 crore every year and Rs. 28,600 crore of
consequent national income a year because of the prevalence of
corruption.
Similarly, the harm caused to poor people by corruption was obvious
from the fact that 36 per cent of the foodgrain and 31 per cent of
sugar stocks meant for public distribution system slipped into black
market, she said.
Schools for netas
She proposed setting up of institutes for grooming politicians with
focus on personality development and value-orientation. After such a
course, the budding politicians should be screened by an autonomous
board for being allowed to contest, she said.
Stressing the need for prescribing a “minimum criterion” for
candidates to contest elections, she said: “An applicant for even a
peon’s post is required to have some qualification, but a political
leader needs none. When there is three-tier screening for selecting
civil servants, why there should not be tougher screening for
politicians who command bureaucrats.”
Loose ends
Lokayukta Justice N. Santhosh Hegde expressed concern over loose ends
in the legislation which were stringent only on common man, but not on
bureaucrats, who indulged in corruption. He wondered why the
prosecuting authority should take permission from the department head
to prosecute a corrupt official when such permission was not required
in other criminal cases.
He said: “Unless we have the will to oppose corruption and law makers
have will to strengthen the anti-corruption laws, it is difficult to
fight corruption.”
Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Siddaramaiah,
KPCC president R.V. Deshpande and the former minister P.G.R. Sindhia
recalled their association with Mr. Hegde.
Ramakrishna Hegde’s daughter and vedike president Mamata Nichani
spoke. Hegde’s wife Shakuntala Hegde was present.
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP demands scrapping of TTD Board
STAFF WRITER 22:31 HRS IST
Hyderabad, Aug 31 (PTI)
BJP today demanded abolition of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD)
Board in view of alleged irregularities and corruption by its
officials.
Speaking to reporters here, party's state unit president Bandaru
Dattatreya said the state government immediately initiate measures to
maintain sanctity of the world famous Tirupati temple.
Dattareya said Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy should intervene in
the matter to ensure protection of temple properties, including
thousands of crore worth jewellery donated by devotees.
The TTD Board should not become the "rehabilitation centre" of ruling
party leaders and the government should take necessary steps
immediately in view of serious allegation of irregularities.
The BJP leader suggested that the Board should be constituted
consisting of religious personalities including saints instead of
making political leaders as its members.
bademiyansubhanallah
‘Billions worth of Indian wealth in Swiss banks’
Special Correspondent
How to retrieve this frozen money should be a top priority: R.
Vaidyanathan
— Photo: V. Ganesan
R. Vaidyanathan, Professor of Finance, IIM, Bangalore, delivering the
Nani Palkhiwala Memorial Lecture on “Tax havens and illegal wealth of
India,” in Chennai on Saturday. He is flanked by V. Ranganathan,
Trustee (left), and R. Anand, Partner, Tax and Regulatory Services.
CHENNAI: Billions of dollars of Indian wealth could be stuck in Swiss
bank accounts simply because of the absent-mindedness of their
original account holders.
Apart from the money that living tax evaders may have stashed away in
tax havens, there is a large chunk that is irretrievable simply
because those who originally parked the money in these bank accounts
have died without informing their heirs of all pertinent details,
according to R. Vaidyanathan, professor of finance at the Indian
Institute of Management, Bangalore. He was delivering the Nani
Palkhivala Memorial Lecture on “Tax Havens and the Illegal Wealth of
India” here on Saturday.
“After a period of time, the bank swallows the money, if the account
holder dies without passing on account information…How to get back
this frozen money that has been swallowed by these banks should be a
top priority,” Professor Vaidyanathan said, pointing out that a
substantial quantity of Indian wealth had been lost in this way.
According to the Global Financial Integrity group, which tracks
illegal financial flows out of the developing world, India lost about
$27 billion every year in this fashion during 2002-2006, said
Professor Vaidyanathan, adding that about a third of this amount was
stashed in Switzerland.
Over the 60 years since Independence, the Republic of India could have
lost as much as $1.5 trillion, he said. In fact, the International
Narcotics Control Strategy Report says that about 40 per cent of all
Indian transactions abroad are hawala.
“Illegal money flow”
Professor Vaidyanathan explained that the flight of capital from India
became an exodus during the 1950s and 60s, when India had high tax
rates and strict forex limits. Today, many on the Who’s Who list of
corporations, entertainment, and politics in India are involved in
this illegal money flow, he said.
He urged the Prime Minister’s Office to insist upon accountability
with regards to Ministerial trips abroad, as many of them were clubbed
with personal trips to nearby tax havens.
Tax havens
Developed countries are working together, especially through the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), to put
pressure on tax havens to release details about tax evaders’ accounts.
If some foreign agency manages to get its hands on Indian names on
that list, the country could even be vulnerable to blackmail on a
grand scale.
“Our decision-making could be compromised,” Professor Vaidyanathan
warned. The other major concern was that these tax havens were being
used as a source of funding for terrorist activities, he added.
“National concern”
The issue should be taken up urgently on a bipartisan basis, as a
problem of national concern, he said. Both Houses of Parliament should
come together to make a declaration that all this money belongs to
India. This would provide a legal basis for future decisions and
courses of action on the international stage.
The Indian government should take up the issue at international fora,
where the clout of larger players in the world economy can also be
used.
Already, the OECD’s threats to blacklist Switzerland may have helped
in getting that country to agree to renegotiate its double taxation
treaty with India, as the Finance Minister announced earlier this
week.
Sid Harth
Mountain to climb for Indian PM in corruption battle
By Pratap Chakravarty (AFP) – 5 hours ago
NEW DELHI — India's prime minister has been the central figure behind
15 years of rapid economic growth -- but he believes corruption is now
holding back development and threatening the nation's future
prospects.
The challenge that Manmohan Singh faces was underlined by the recent
refusal of many judges to reveal details of their wealth, despite
orders to do so by their senior colleagues in the Supreme Court.
The row is seen as a test case in India's fight against corruption,
with the judges' reluctance to prove their own transparency reflecting
a culture of privacy and vested interests that many consider beyond
reform.
In a major speech last week, Singh used strong language to describe
the damaging effect that bribes, extortion and fraud have on all
levels of life in India.
He admitted that graft meant infrastructure projects were late, over-
budget and often poor quality, and he labelled India's opaque business
practices as "a fertile breeding ground for the evil of corruption."
"The pervasive corruption in our country tarnishes our image," he
said, warning it "discourages investors who expect fair treatment and
transparent dealings when dealing with public authorities."
The difficult task ahead was amply demonstrated two days after Singh's
speech, when judges of only two of India's 29 states agreed to declare
their assets.
Many said releasing the information would leave them vulnerable to
attack by aggrieved litigants.
"What message are these judges sending out to the nation?" asked
Anupama Jha, Indian director of the Transparency International
corruption watchdog.
"Judges were once greatly respected and now these questions about
judicial corruption have lowered their status. It is a sad situation,"
Jha told AFP.
Last year, India, the world's second-fastest growing economy, slipped
further in the watchdog's corruption index from 72nd to 85th in a list
of 180 countries.
Singh -- who instigated the country's economic boom with reforms
launched in 1991 when he was finance minister -- rose to be prime
minister in 2004 and has retained his reputation as the "Mr. Clean" of
India's grubby political scene.
But his ruling Congress party was re-elected in May with at least 40
sitting MPs facing criminal cases, according to the Indian Association
for Democratic Reforms, and other parties are similarly troubled.
For millions of ordinary Indians, petty extortion is an everyday
curse, with car drivers often stopped by police and forced to pay cash
bribes or face a lengthy examination of all their personal
identification and legal documents.
Many Indians resent such "skimming" -- perhaps 200 rupees (five US
dollars) a time -- but accept it is part of life.
"Corruption is very much in our blood," said Alok Srivastava, project
director in the privately-run Centre for Media Studies think-tank in
New Delhi.
"It is a good thing to go after systemic corruption and the big fish
but at the same time one must remember that at the grass roots poor
people even have to bribe officials to collect wood for their fires."
Srivastava and his team surveyed 22,700 households last year and
concluded that one in three families living below the poverty line had
had to hand over bribes to access basic public services such as water
and electricity.
A corporate scandal earlier this year, in which outsourcing giant
Satyam was revealed to have been falsifying its accounts for years,
proved that India's new business entrepreneurs are also far from
blameless.
After Singh's speech, several national anti-corruption agencies set to
drawing up a blueprint for action -- including the formation of a new
unified taskforce with a one billion rupee (20 million dollar) budget.
Among the promised initiatives are special courts for skimming
offensives, more powers for anti-fraud agencies, and increased
protection for whistle-blowers.
But India's bureaucracy is as slow-moving and vulnerable to corruption
as other parts of the public sector, and Central Intelligence Agency
spokesman Harsh Bhal conceded it may be some time before any such
plans came to fruition.
"They are still at a pre-proposal stage," he said.
Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved
chhotemianinshallah
G-20 FMs decide on steps to deal with tax havens
Press Trust Of India
London, September 05, 2009
First Published: 21:57 IST(5/9/2009)
Last Updated: 22:00 IST(5/9/2009)
Finance Ministers of G-20 countries, including India, on Saturday
decided to take counter measures against tax havens, particularly the
non-cooperative ones, to prevent money laundering and terror financing
from March next year.
Following up on the decisions taken at the G-20 summit in London in
April, the meeting decided on steps that could enable governments get
information from such tax havens.
A resolution adopted at the end of the meeting decided that the
nations would "deliver an effective programme of peer review, capacity
building, and counter measures to tackle non cooperative jurisdiction
that failed to make regulatory standards, anti-money laundering/
combating financing of terrorism."
The measures would also include information exchange standard, stand
in ready-to-use counter measures against tax havens from march 2010,
British Chancellor Alistair Darling told reporters at the end of the
meeting.
chhotemianinshallah
New tax pact will help India trace black money: Swiss govt
Agencies
Posted: Sep 06, 2009 at 1128 hrs IST
New Delhi As India and Switzerland prepare to renegotiate the Double
Taxation Avoidance Agreement, the Swiss government has said it was
confident that the pact would be finalised by next year and enable New
Delhi to seek details about blackmoney stashed in banks there.
"Yes" was the emphatic answer of Switzerland's Vice- President Doris
Leuthard when asked whether renegotiating the treaty, which was signed
in 1995, would enable India seek details of specific cases where tax
evaders money was lying in Swiss banks.
She said she was confident of a positive outcome from the talks that
are to begin in December. "I think next year this new treaty can be
accomplished," Leuthard, who was here for an informal WTO ministerial,
said.
Leuthard said she had "good talks with India on tax matters."
On Swiss Bankers Association's (SBA) stance that India was not welcome
there on a name-fishing expedition, she said no country in the world
would allow such an activity.
"Fishing expedition is not allowed (anywhere in) the world. We have
the OECD standards. We follow international rules...we do not protect
crime," Leuthard, who is also Minister of Economic Affairs, said.
Leuthard said India will have to apply through legal procedures based
on the existing double taxation avoidance treaty if it has demands
about specific cases of tax evasion.
"We already have a treaty with India. It only works if there is a
concrete demand from the Indian authorities. The demand must follow
principles of the treaty," she added.
Asked why Switzerland is not entertaining India's request when it has
already given account details of a large number people to the US
government, Leuthard said: "The US had a concrete demand. Legal
procedure was already underway. These were all clients which cheated
the authorities and we never cover (up) fraud."
Switzerland had last month reached an agreement with the US to give
that country's Internal Revenue Service details of 4,450 clients who
Washington suspected of evading taxes. The issue of brining back black
money stashed in Swiss banks had become a hot topic during the Lok
Sabha elections earlier this year, and the Supreme Court is also
hearing a public interest litigation accusing the government of
inaction in bringing the money back to India.
chhotemianinshallah
71 new fast track courts to fight corruption
IANS 6 September 2009, 05:08pm IST
NEW DELHI: The government has sanctioned 71 new fast-track courts to
speed up the war against corruption, according to the Central Bureau
of Investigation (CBI). These will come up in various states soon.
The government's move follows an appeal made publicly to Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh by CBI director Ashwani Kumar here last
month.
Kumar made the plea at a CBI gathering where he pointed out the "weak
justice system" that was slowing down efforts to net the corrupt and
bring them to justice.
"The CBI has always been active in its war against corruption. But the
prime minister's impassioned speech (at our meeting) has indeed
encouraged us," CBI spokesman Harsh Bahl told IANS.
"We have resolved to complete all our investigations within one year
and conclude the trial of corruption cases within two years."
Bahl added that the government had sanctioned 71 fast-track courts to
speed up the prosecution and bring the accused to justice quickly.
"These will be established in various states."
Bahl also said that the CBI was moving to fill up "some vacancies in
the prosecution wing".
Speaking at the CBI biennial conference, Manmohan Singh had warned
that corruption was seriously hurting the mass of poor people in
India.
"The poor are disproportionately hurt because of corruption," he said.
"We have some of the most ambitious and wide-ranging programmes in
place to help the poor and the deprived sections of the society."
Manmohan Singh called corruption a menace that "tarnishes our image"
and "hurts our economic growth in a variety of ways". He urged
officers in the CBI not to let the "big fish" get away.
According to the Berlin-based watchdog Transparency International,
India figures 85th among 180 countries in the corruption perception
index.
A Transparency International survey backed by the Centre for Media
Studies says that Indians cough out a whopping Rs.8,830 million ($176
million) in bribes in rural India alone to avail themselves of
governmental services.
The Asian Development Bank says that corruption is the third largest
"problematic factor" in India after poor infrastructure and
inefficient bureaucracy.
Activists and officials admit that corruption has enveloped virtually
every aspect of life and almost every sector in India. The worst
sufferers of the sleaze are the mass of poor people, experts say.
"Corruption hurts poor people the most. This is the biggest challenge
for the country," said former CBI chief Vijay Shankar. "It's due to
corruption that the poor fail to benefit from development schemes."
CBI officers have in the past pointed out that the agency needs more
and more staff to step up its crusade against corruption.
The CBI has only 5,000 agents. It registered 752 cases against
government officials in 2008. Over 9,000 trials are pending in courts.
Till June this year the CBI had registered 565 cases against 823
government officers.
"It needs political will to fight corruption," said Gandhian S.D.
Sharma. "This is a war we have to win."
...and I am Sid harth
chhotemianinshallah
No 'black money' statistics exist: Swiss banks
Press Trust Of India
New Delhi, September 13, 2009
First Published: 15:19 IST(13/9/2009)
Last Updated: 16:16 IST(13/9/2009)
Amid claims from various quarters that Indians have stashed away
thousands of crores in secret bank accounts in Switzerland, the Swiss
banks have asserted that any statistics about black money "simply do
not exist".
Various political parties and other groups have been claiming that the
black money stashed away in Swiss banks by Indians exceed one trillion
dollars.
These statistics, which put Indians at the top in terms of deposits in
Swiss banks, have often been quoted to global institutions and
sometimes even to the Swiss National Bank, the central bank of the
country.
Seeking to demolish the "myth" over these figures being "circulated as
gospel truth", a top official at the Swiss Bankers' Association told
PTI from Basel that there were no truth at all in such statistics.
"Anyone claiming to have such figures should be forced to identify
their source and explain the methodology used to produce them," said
the SBA's Head of International Communications, James Nason.
"We take all our statistics from Swiss National Bank and statistics
about 'black money' simply do not exist," he added.
Nason said he was aware of such figures being quoted to a SBA report
on bank deposits in the Swiss banks by people of various
nationalities, which put Indians as the biggest depositors there, but
asserted that there were no truth in it and it never published any
such report.
chhotemianinshallah
Blowing The Whistle
The CVC has failed to be an institutional bulwark against corruption.
The reason? Wrong appointments. It's time to fix the methodology of
these appointments and make them transparent.
Prashant Bhushan , V.K. Shunglu , Arvind Kejriwal , Madhu
Bhaduri
The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) was set up as a department of
the government of India in the 1960s. It was functioning as an
organization to advise government on all matters relating to
corruption in public services and lack of integrity vis-à-vis public
servants. Subsequently, in the Hawala case in 1997, the Supreme Court
directed that the CBI should be freed from government control and that
the CVC will have superintendence over the functioning of the CBI and
it will also be granted statutory status so as to make it independent
of the government. Thereafter, section 8 1 (a) & (b) of the Central
Vigilance Act, 2003 gave supervisory jurisdiction over the CBI to the
CVC. It also granted statutory status to the CVC and provided for a
procedure for appointment of the members of the CVC by a Committee
comprising of the Prime Minister, Home Minister and the Leader of the
Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
Subsequently, in 2005, after the murder of Satyendra Dubey, who had
blown the whistle on corruption in NHAI, the Supreme Court directed
that the Government put in place either an Act or at least
administrative procedures for entertaining complaints of whistle
blowers and protecting them from victimization. Consequently, pending
legislation on the subject, the government issued an administrative
order known as the Public Interest Disclosure and Protection of
Informer (PIDPI) resolution by which CVC was empowered to entertain
complaints from a whistle blower from any part of the Central
government or its Public Sector Undertakings. It also empowered the
CVC to get those complaints investigated through any agency of the
government and also issue suitable directions to the government for
the prosecution of officers. It further empowered the CVC to issue
directions to the government for the protection of whistle blowers
from victimization and for providing security to those persons.
Through all these processes, the CVC came to be regarded as the main
institutional bulwark in this country against corruption. In addition
to its original function of advising government on all matters
relating to corruption in public services and lack of integrity vis-à-
vis public servants, the CVC also acquired the power to supervise the
functioning of the CBI in its investigations and also to entertain
complaints by whistle blowers and to take suitable action by way of
prosecuting corrupt officers found in those cases and protecting the
whistle blowers.
Unfortunately, over the last few years, as the following examples and
case studies would show, the CVC has failed to live up to the
expectations of acting as an institutional bulwark against corruption.
In particular, it has failed to appreciate its powers and functions to
supervise the functioning of the CBI and its role as an institution to
whom whistle blowers could turn for action against corrupt officers or
for protection against victimization. What can be seen is the
following:
•In a large number of corruption cases by public servants supported by
documents sent to the CBI for investigation, the CBI even refused to
register an FIR and investigate the matter. Despite repeated written
complaints being made to the CVC and requesting the CVC to exercise
its supervisory jurisdiction over the CBI to get it to investigate
those cases, the CVC has failed to exercise its jurisdiction vested by
the CVC Act.
•One example of such a case is the Scorpene Submarine deal case, where
the Citizens Forum Against Corruption comprising of a number of highly
respected retired government officers, like the former Navy Chief
Adml. Tahiliani, former Ambassadors of the Government of India, former
Secretaries of the government, etc., wrote to the CBI to investigate
the corruption in the Rs.18000 crore Submarine purchase contract in
which large amount of evidence and documents were published by Outlook
magazine. The CBI refused to register an FIR and the CVC did not
direct the CBI to do so, despite it being a case crying for
investigation.
•Similarly, in the complaint against former Chief Justice of India,
Justice Y.K. Sabharwal, again, despite detailed written complaints to
the CBI based on documentary evidence by respectable persons, no FIR
was registered nor any investigation made by the CBI. Again the CVC
did not use its supervisory jurisdiction over the CBI to get it
investigated.
•More recently, in another case involving a telecom licence given to
Swan Technologies, there was compelling evidence to suggest that the
licence was given for a bribe by transferring shares of the company to
benami companies. No FIR was directed to be registered and the CVC
merely asked the CVO of the Department of Telecom itself (the very
Department against whom complaint had been made) to investigate the
same and give a report to the CVC. It may be pointed out that this was
a case where a company having an original asset of one crore (to which
Reliance had Rs.1000 crore by way of preference shares), was
transferred for a few crores to a Mauritius Company with unknown
owners just before the licence was granted. With days of the grant of
a telecom licence and spectrum, it was sold off to a gulf based
company for about 10,000 crores.
All this has defeated the express intention of the Supreme Court on
the basis of which this supervisory jurisdiction over the CBI was
vested with the CVC.
CVC's role under the whistle blower protection notification
Several hundred complaints under the Whistle Blower Protection
Notification have been received by the CVC. Many of these were very
serious complaints involving serious acts of corruption by very senior
officials in various government departments or Public Sector
organizations. However, it appears that in virtually none of those
cases, has the CVC recommended any serious action against any senior
officers complained against. Not only this, in a large number of
cases, the whistle blower was subjected to severe victimization by way
of charge sheets, suspensions and transfers. In virtually no case, has
the CVC ordered the government departments/PSUs to stop the
administrative harassment/victimization of the whistle blower even
when it was absolutely clear that the victimization was mala fide and
was taking place only on account of the whistle blown by the person.
In fact, in some of these cases, the CVC has gone so far as to align
itself with the senior officer/government department/PSU against whom
the whistle blower had made these complaints. In a case, where a
whistle blower has complained against the Chairman of the Central Bank
of India, the CVC not only did not take any action against the
Chairman nor did it protect the whistle blower from victimization by
way of suspension/repeated charge sheeting/transfer, etc., but went
further to ask the Central Bank to engage a common lawyer to defend
the CVC in the petition filed by the whistle blower in the High
Court.
The pattern which emerges regarding the manner in which the CVC dealt
with the whistle blowers is as follows:
In the beginning, the entire attention of the CVC was focused on
routinely protecting the identity of the whistle blower and not
processing the complaints further by investigating the charges, etc.
Later, the manner in which the complaints were processed was to send
them to the CVO of the same department against whom the complaint had
been made, which in turn sends the complaint to the person against
whom the complaint was made for his response. Usually, on the response
of the officer against whom the complaint had been made, the complaint
was closed without even referring the response to the whistle blower
for pointing out any misleading or false information given by the
complained in his defence. Usually, the CVOs of the various
departments are officers within the same department who are working
under more senior officers in that department and their ACRs are also
written by these senior officers. It is, therefore, unrealistic to
expect these CVOs to find fault with their bosses who would be writing
their ACRs. However, despite this, this kind of routine procedure has
been adopted by the CVC to get white-washing reports from the CVOs and
close the complaints on that basis without any independent
investigation and without even referring the response back to the
whistle blower.
The whistleblowers have usually been victimized by their bosses
against whom the complaints were made, usually by way of departmental
chargesheets and transfers. No action has been taken by the CVC to
protect them from such victimization on the basis that taking
departmental action against the employees is the prerogative of the
department. This attitude has rendered the power given to the CVC by
the whistleblower notification into a dead letter.As a result of
inaction on the part of the CVC, the whistle blower complaints have
been coming down.
No of Whistle Blower complaints received by the CVC
•In 2006- 338
•In 2007- 328
•In 2008- 276
It is clear that the CVC has failed to live up to the expectations of
it functioning as an institutional bulwark against corruption. The
reasons appear to be that by and large persons being appointed as
Vigilance Commissioners are former bureaucrats from various ministries
and departments. Unfortunately, it appears that despite the statutory
status given to the CVC to enable it act independently of the
government, most of these members have not been able to outgrow their
bureaucratic servility to their political masters. Perhaps, the
problem also lies in the choice of the bureaucrats chosen to become
members of the CVC. It appears and stands to reason that neither the
present government nor the leader of the opposition (who is an
important member of the previous government and aspiring to become a
member of the future government) are interested in having a CVC which
will function as a true watchdog or bulwark against corruption. Since
the leaders of the present government or the previous government or
their colleagues would be the subject matter of investigations and
prosecution for corruption, if the CVC were to fulfill the role
assigned to it and expected of it by the Supreme Court, it appears
that they want a servile and submissive officer as Vigilance
Commissioner who would deal with corruption cases in a routine manner
and not as a vigilant and aggressive watchdog against corruption. In
fact, similar problem has cropped up in the appointment of other
statutory authorities like NHRC.
Today, when the government is in the process of drafting a Whistle
Blower Act, perhaps the time has come to revisit the method of
appointment of members of the CVC and the transparency and methodology
of these appointments. The time has perhaps come to put in place a
mechanism to free such appointments from the influence of those
persons who are likely to be the subject matter of the anti-corruption
exercise of the CVC and also put in place a system of selection which
guarantees transparency and some degree of public participation.
Prashant Bhushan is Advocate, Supreme Court of India, V.K. Shunglu is
former Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Arvind Kejriwal is an
RTI Activist and Madhu Bhadhuri is former Ambassador, Government of
India.
chhotemianinshallah
chhotemianinshallah
Govt on black money trail, says Pranab Mukherjee
HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, October 31, 2009
First Published: 00:45 IST(31/10/2009)
Last Updated: 02:33 IST(31/10/2009)
India has begun tracking down money stashed away in secret bank
accounts in Switzerland and Belgium.
The government has finalised dates to renegotiate with Switzerland and
Belgium to broaden the scope of the existing treaties. The authorities
have also stepped up efforts to bring back money parked illegally in
foreign banks.
According to original plans, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee was to
meet the Swiss authorities from December 10-11 to discuss the issue.
“But I think the date for the meeting has been advanced by a month,”
Mukherjee said at the annual Hindustan Times Leadership Summit on
Friday.
The government has also prepared a list of countries with whom it will
sign tax information exchange agreements.
A model of the agreement is in the last stage of finalisation. The
Income Tax Act, 1961, has been amended through the Finance Act, 2009,
with a new formulation to enable the government to enter into fresh
agreements with other countries.
Options for domestic measures to obtain information on bank accounts
maintained abroad by Indian citizens is also under way.
Mukherjee said no estimate had been made of the amount of funds
stashed away in Swiss banks. “It was estimated way back in 1985, but
since then, no fresh details have been worked out,” he said.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former deputy prime minister L.K.
Advani earlier said the slush money parked in foreign banks could be
in the range of Rs 25,000 crore (Rs 250 billion) to Rs 75,000 crore
(Rs 750 billion).
Swiss Ambassador to India Phillippe Welti hinted that his country
would be willing to share information with India about bank accounts
of tax defaulters after the two sides revised the existing treaty on
double taxation in December.
“Once the Indian and Swiss governments have agreed on a possible
change in the existing treaty, Switzerland will implement the treaty,”
Welti told a television news channel recently.
Delhi-based think tank National Institute of Public Finance and Policy
had made an estimate of the black money in circulation in the country.
In 1983-84, the amount was between Rs 31,584 crore (Rs 315.84 billion)
and Rs 36,786 crore (Rs 367.86 billion).
According to research carried out by economist Arun Kumar, the size of
the parallel economy in the country could be around Rs 16 lakh crore
(Rs 16.90 trillion), or 40 per cent of India’s gross domestic product
— the market value of all goods manufactured and services generated in
a year.
Effectively, the government is missing out on about Rs 5 lakh crore
(Rs 5 trillion) of tax revenue. This is more than the current fiscal
deficit of Rs 4 lakh crore (Rs 4 trillion).
Zohan Dvir Scrappy , the High Priest of Sophia
in East part of India
are becoming Mao-ist .
n Oct 31, 4:36 am, chhotemianinshallah <citad...@gmx.com> wrote:
> http://www.hindustantimes.com/Govt-on-black-money-trail-says-Pranab/H...
charlie vietcong
Indians should go through a period of Communism
before entering into more developments,
but the Chinese will fool the Indians
if Indians were to be retarded .
n Oct 31, 10:24 am, "Zohan Dvir Scrappy , the High Priest of
101lee
embelished with a deftly paint of lard on the lips of the figurehead. It
becomes halal money after that.
"Zohan Dvir Scrappy , the High Priest of Sophia" <hindu...@gmail.com>
wrote in message
news:e9a46f57-1bcb-47e8...@f1g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
Chairman Mao , expert fucker of Chinese High School Girl 's cunts in China
the Class system and the Dalits .
Chinese would not tolerate this class
division except when the Chinese are faced with the
Malays .
n Nov 5, 5:38 am, "101lee" <101...@tmnet.net.my> wrote:
> All the money that goes through my hands go through a process of being
> embelished with a deftly paint of lard on the lips of the figurehead. It
> becomes halal money after that.
> "Zohan Dvir Scrappy , the High Priest of Sophia" <hinduvis...@gmail.com>
> wrote in messagenews:e9a46f57-1bcb-47e8...@f1g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
chhotemianinshallah
IT, ED quiz Koda, hawala trader is key
11 Nov 2009, 0511 hrs IST, Ashok K Mishra, ET Bureau
PATNA: The Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate (ED) resumed their
interrogation of the former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda at
Ranchi on Tuesday but they are pinning their hopes on the
interrogation of a key Mumbai based hawala trader Manjo Punamia whose
disclosures can provide vital clues in the multi-crore money
laundering scam in which Mr Koda is an accused.
According to sources, the sleuths have been interrogating Punamia and
Arvind Vyas, another Mumbai based trader in Mumbai since Monday. While
Vyas is proving to be a hard nut to crack, sources said Punamia
however at one point of time agreed to become an approver in the money
laundering scam case. “At one stage Punamia agreed to become an
approver but soon he backtracked. We will wait for tomorrow and if he
still refuses to give in we will ask the ED to arrest him,” said an IT
official.
Sources said if Punamia agrees to become an approver, it will be
indeed a major breakthrough in the money laundering scam case.
“Punamia’s information regarding the hawala transactions made by the
associates of Koda through him (Punamia) will be a major lead to track
down the names of the players involved in the scam. In that case, it
will be easy to vindicate Koda’s involvement in the scam,” said the IT
official .
The IT sleuths have not been able to recover any substantial evidence
in course of the raids launched at the residential locations of Mr
Koda. “We have recovered papers showing an investment of just Rs 40
lakh from Koda’s residences. But the fact is that huge sum of money —
something between Rs 2500 crore to Rs 4000 crore — was sent abroad
through hawala route. So, the disclosures of Punamia will have an
important bearing on the scam case,”
sources said.
Sources said Punamia was managing the Balaji group of companies, which
was actually floated by the Koda associates who had transferred $100
million through hawala route. It also transferred $10 million to a
Dubai front man.
bademiyansubhanallah
Income Tax officials raid Madhu Koda's residences
31 Oct 2009, 1442 hrs IST, PTI
RANCHI: Income Tax sleuths today raided the residences of former
Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda after the Enforcement Directorate
registered a case against him and his three former ministerial
colleagues for alleged money laundering and diversion of state funds.
According to a senior I-T official, separate teams conducted raids at
Koda's residences in Ranchi and Chaibasa.
"We can only tell later," he said when asked about the number of
places being raided.
The Enforcement Directorate had registered the case on October 9
against them also on charges of making huge illegal investments abroad
including purchase of mines as far as in Liberia. Koda was chief
minister between February 2006 and August 2008.
38-year-old Koda, who may also face arrest, is the first former chief
minister and high-profile politician to have been booked under the
Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The ED had filed an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR), which
is equivalent to an FIR, before the Prevention of Money Laundering Act
court in Ranchi against Koda and three of his cabinet colleagues --
Kamlesh Singh, Bhanu Pratap Shahi and Bhandu Tirkey -- besides five
other persons.
According to the ECIR, Koda is alleged to have purchased mines in
Liberia worth $17 lakh (Rs 8.5 crore) besides making other 'benami'
purchases in the name of his close confidant Binod Sinha, once a
tractor mechanic.
As per the ECIR, the property in the name of Sinha runs into several
hundred crores of rupees.
One time close associate of RSS, Koda shot into fame after he clinched
a political coup with Congress support by becoming chief minister of
the mineral rich state in 2006 as an independent MLA, the third
politician in the country to achieve this feat.
Koda and eight others have been accused of amassing property worth
hundreds of crores of rupees including those in places like UAE,
Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Liberia.
As per the declaration given by the three ministers individually,
nobody had bank deposits more than Rs 1.9 lakh or immovable property
worth over Rs 1.15 lakh.
The ED was looking into details of real wealth of the accused
persons.
Two other cabinet colleagues of Koda have already been booked by the
ED for alleged money laundering, foreign exchange violations and
forgery.
The ED swung into action after Jharkhand vigilance department lodged a
complaint and searched the homes of Koda, and Hari Narayan Rai and
Enos Ekka, both former ministers.
ED officials claimed they had come across documents suggesting that
the former ministers had amassed huge wealth including mines, real
estate firms and property also in Hong Kong.
bademiyansubhanallah
Ex-Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda booked under PMLA
9 Oct 2009, 1853 hrs IST, PTI
NEW DELHI: A case was registered against former Jharkhand chief
minister Madhu Koda and three of his cabinet colleagues by the
Enforcement Directorate on Friday for alleged money laundering and
diversion of state funds besides making huge investments abroad
without legal sanction.
The ED filed a Enforcement Case Information Report (equivalent to a
FIR) before the Prevention of Money Laundering Act court in Ranchi
against Koda, Kamlesh Singh, Bhanu Pratap Shahi and Bhandu Tirkey
besides five others.
The ministers including Koda, who was the chief minister between
February 2005 and August 2008, have been accused of amassing
properties worth hundreds of crores including those in places like
UAE, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Liberia.
Quoting from the ECIR, sources said Koda, who was the first
independent candidate to become a chief minister, has been named for
purchase of mines in Liberia worth USD 17 lakh (Rs 8.5 crore).
Most of the assets by Koda, ironically the first chief minister to be
booked under PMLA, was purchased in the name of a close confidant
Binod Sinha, once a tractor mechanic.
As per the ECIR, the properties in the name of Sinha runs into several
hundred crores of rupees.
As per the declaration given by the three ministers individually,
nobody had bank deposits more than Rs 1.9 lakh or immovable property
worth over Rs 1.15 lakh.
Sources said the agency is looking into details of real wealth of the
accused ministers and it will also attach all the properties
identified. They said under the PMLA, the onus of proof is on the
accused rather than the agency.
Two other cabinet colleagues of Koda have already been booked by the
ED for alleged money laundering, foreign exchange violations and
forgery.
The Directorate had swung into action after Jharkhand vigilance
department lodged a complaint and recently searched the homes of Hari
Narayan Rai and Enos Ekka, both cabinet ministers in the Koda
government besides that of Koda.
ED officials claimed they had come across documents suggesting that
the former ministers had amassed huge wealth including mines, real
estate firms and properties in Hong Kong, Thailand and some other
countries.
A case was lodged against the two former ministers by the vigilance
department on the directive of a vigilance court under various IPC
sections last year.
Efforts to get in touch with Koda did not fructify as his mobile phone
was switched off and no one answered the phone calls at his
residence.
The vigilance court had then directed the department to file the
charges when it heard a petition by Vinod Kumar, a resident of
Jharkhand's Deoghar district.
Both Rai and Ekka were arrested following the Court's directive
recently after which the ED came into the picture.
bademiyansubhanallah
Madhu Koda in hospital, raids continue for fourth day
3 Nov 2009, 2016 hrs IST, IANS
RANCHI/NEW DELHI: Former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda, under
the scanner for allegedly amassing over Rs.2,000 crore (Rs.20 bn /
$425 mn) illegally, was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of
Apollo Hospital in Ranchi as raids continued at his premises for the
fourth consecutive day Tuesday.
Income Tax (IT) officials were questioning Koda at his Ranchi
residence when he said that he was feeling uneasy. Koda has a history
of medical problems.
"He was admitted after complaining of stomach ache, vomiting and high
blood pressure. We are conducting tests and will be able to say
anything after the test reports," D.P Sinha, a doctor at the hospital,
told IANS.
"His condition is now stable," he said.
Koda was operated upon a fortnight ago after he complained of stomach
pain.
The Lok Sabha MP returned home from the hospital last week when the IT
department started raiding his houses and other properties.
Both the Enforcement Directorate and the IT department, which is
leading the probe, are investigating disproportionate assets amassed
by Koda and his associates. They have already conducted raids at 70
places in eight cities and discovered documents relating to illegal
transactions worth Rs.20 billion.
The Enforcement Directorate has already charged Koda with investing
$1.7 million in a coal mine in Liberia through a Russian middleman.
Investigators told IANS that they were still trying to unravel
investments made at different places, the network used to invest money
and people involved in the illegal transactions.
"This is a big network and money was funnelled illegally to countries
abroad," said a finance ministry official. The investigations have now
fanned out to five countries.
An official press release on Monday said the IT department is
continuing its search and seizure operations under provisions of the
Income Tax Act and has summoned six people for questioning.
The six who have been asked to appear before the department Nov 6 are
Vinod Kumar Sinha, Sanjay Chaudhary, Devendra Mukhiya, Basant
Bhattacharya, Manoj Punamiya and Anil Bastawde. Sinha and Chaudhary
are close associates of Koda.
"If they fail to appear on the said date, the department will be
constrained to take strict legal actions as permissible under various
laws," the statement added.
Asked if Koda was cooperating with the IT sleuths, Director-General
(IG-Investigation), Anjani Kumar, told reporters, "Not much. If I get
proper support and cooperation, the investigation will conclude
soon."
Meanwhile, Sinha Tuesday said that he will fully co-operate with the
investigation.
"I will personally appear before the Income Tax department before the
given date (Nov 6) and present version of things," Sinha told a
television channel.
Sinha acknowledged that he is a good friend of Koda and said the raids
were "politically motivated" ahead of assembly polls in the state.
"Koda is good friend of mine. I belong to his constituency and I know
him well. The Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate raids are
politically motivated and aims to defame Koda," Sinha said.
"The raids are motivated due to assembly polls. There are people who
do not want Koda to emerge stronger in our areas (Jamshedpur and
Chaibaasa)," he said.
Koda became chief minister at the age of 35. In 2005, his declaration
to the Election Commission listed his total assets at Rs.12 lakh.
bademiyansubhanallah
ED, I-T sleuths find clinching proof against Madhu Koda
3 Nov 2009, 0452 hrs IST, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: Officials of the income-tax department and Enforcement
Directorate have uncovered what could be clinching documentary
evidence linking former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda to an
international money-laundering scam.
During raids on the residence of Mr Manoj Punamia, in Mumbai,
officials found document pertaining to hawala transfer of Rs 500 crore
($100 million) through ‘Abdul bhai’ in Dubai. Sources said that Mr
Punamia was working at the behest of Mr Sanjay Chaudhary , a known
associate of Mr Koda. Additionally , raids at the premises of Balaji
Bullion produced documentary trail for a transfer of Rs 50 crore ($10
million) to Dubai. Known associates of Mr Koda, Mr Binod Sinha, Mr
Arvind Vyas and Mr Sanjay Chaudhary are directors in this company.
Searches were conducted following a disproportionate assets allegation
against Mr Koda and his associates. The enforcement directorate
registered a case against Mr Koda and his associates Sanjay Chaudhary
and Binod Kumar Sinha on October 9 on charges of making huge illegal
investments abroad. The investigations led to the I-T department raids
on Mr Choudhary and Mr Sinha, which in turn triggered off nation-wide
raids at 70 premises across nine cities.
IT officials claimed that they found evidence of Rs 2,000 crore in
hawala transaction and illegal investments. Searches were conducted at
premises in Delhi , Kolkata, Mumbai, Lucknow, Nasik, Ranchi, Chaibasa
and Jamshedpur.
In 2007, Mr Chaudhary, a tractor mechanic with property worth Rs 200
crore in and around Ranchi, set up two companies in Dubai — Cam Pac
Manufacturing LLC and Blue Techno. These companies are understood to
have undertaken investments of Mr Koda in steel and mining operations
in Thailand , Liberia, Malaysia, Hong Kong and South Africa.
Evidence of investment of nearly Rs 8 crore in mining interests by the
Dubai based company have also been found.
Mr Koda’s other associate Binod Sinha is said to be a director of
three firms in Mumbai and their transactions in the last one-and-a-
half years were to Balaji Bullion Corporation (Rs 360 crore), Balaji
Bullion Bazar (Rs 990 crore) and Balaji Bullion Commodities (Rs 100
crore). IT officials have also seized documents worth Rs 550 crore
sent through hawala to Dubai, Thailand, Malaysia and African
countries. Interpol help might be sought to probe the case.
As the I-T department carried out its multi city raids, Mr Koda was
interrogated on camera by officials over the weekend . I-T sources
said that Mr Koda has provided information about investments made at
different places, the network used to invest money and people involved
in the illegal transaction.
For a third day, incometax department officials continued raids at
more than 100 residential premises and companies in Ranchi,
Jamshedpur, Chaibasa, New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Lucknow and
Ghaziabad among other places. The houses of chartered accountants of
Messrs Sinha and Chaudhary in Ranchi and Jamshedpur have also been
searched. Day and night searches are expected to be conducted over the
next two to three days.
bademiyansubhanallah
FIR filed against Madhu Koda
2 Jul 2009, 2305 hrs IST, ET Bureau
RANCHI: The vigilance police station on Thursday lodged an FIR against
former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda and three of his former
cabinet colleagues — Bandhu Tirkey, Bhanu Pratap Sahi and Kamlesh
Singh — in a disproportionate assets (DA) case.
The move follows a directive by special vigilance judge Vinay Kant
Khan, who is hearing the petition filed by Rajeev Sharma. The four are
charged with amassing wealth disproportionate to their known source of
income.
The same court on Saturday had issued non-bailable warrants against
two former ministers — Ainosh Ekka and Hari Narayan Rai — in
connection with the DA case. The two are absconding and are yet to be
arrested.
Sid Harth
Hawala transactions of Madhu Koda: I-T quizzes Punamia
11 Nov 2009, 2134 hrs IST, Ashok K Mishra, ET Bureau
PATNA: The interrogation of Mumbai-based hawala trader Manoj Punamia,
who played a key role in the transfer of ill-gotten money of
associates of former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda, may lead to
the disclosure of the involvement of several other politicians and
bureaucrats who too may have laundered their money through him
(Punamia).
The income tax and enforcement directorate (ET) have been quizzing
Punami at Mumbai for the last three days hoping he will eventually
start disclosing the hawala transactions of Madhu Koda. But sources
said Punamia is a big time hawala trader whose clients may not be
limited to Koda and company but other politicians and bureaucrats as
well who may be closely watching the developments.
If Punamia opens up and starts disclosing the details of the hawala
transaction made by Koda associates , their hawala transaction amount
could be between Rs 2500 crore to Rs 4000 crore. But the core issue is
that Punamia is running a big time hawala racket which is in excess of
1.5 lakh crore. So it not only the question of Koda but there may be
whole lot of other players from New Delhi and other states who may be
using the services of Punamia to transfer their money to abroad by
hawala route .This will create a big furor in the political and
bureaucratic set up said an IT source.
No wonder, according to the IT source, it could be a scary prospect
for Punamia who is perhaps apprehensive that his disclosure may invite
even threat to his life.
As for the IT and ED officials , they have been mounting pressure on
Punamia to become an approver in the multi crore money laundering scam
case in which Koda is an accused . Even on Wednesday , the officials
grilled him at Mumbai but he remained non-committal. We are still
optimistic that he will become an approver .We are trying and will
keep on trying but if it does not work , the ED may then will have the
option to arrest him sources said.
Sources further maintained that they may be may be even directed by
the powers that be to slow down the investigation if it threatened to
explode into a real big time hawala scam in which several other
politicians may be involved . We initially started on the
investigation of the involvement of Koda into the money laundering
scam. But the scam may have a wider outreach if the investigation
reached to its logical conclusion source said.
Sid Harth
Arrest warrants issued against Koda's aides
11 Nov 2009, 2005 hrs IST, IANS
RANCHI: The Income Tax (IT) department on Wednesday issued arrest
warrants against Vinod Sinha and Sanjay Chaudhary, close associates of
former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda, who is faced with charges
of laundering Rs 2,500 crore.
"We have issued arrest warrants against Vinod Sinha and Sanjay
Chaudhary and asked the concerned police station to arrest them and
produce them before us," said Ajit Srivastava, additional director of
investigations in the IT department.
"Vinod Sinha's lawyer appeared before us, requesting that they (the
lawyer) should be allowed to be present when Sinha appears before us,"
he added.
On Oct 9, the ED filed a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering
Act (PMLA) against Koda, three more former ministers as well as his
associates Vinod Sinha and Sanjay Chaudhary. Vikas Sinha, brother of
Sinha, was on Nov 6 sent to ED custody for 10 days.
According to sources, Vikas has admitted to sending Rs 40 crore abroad
for Koda.
Sid Harth
IT department to check PAN card details in Koda case
11 Nov 2009, 1859 hrs IST, PTI
NEW DELHI: The Income Tax department, investigating allegations of
hawala transactions and investments by former Jharkhand chief minister
Madhu Koda, is verifying details of PAN cards found during searches in
connection with the probe.
The department, sources said, has seized a number of PAN cards during
its nationwide searches and there is a possibility of one individual
using different PAN cards at the same time.
"The income earned through various sources by an individual can be
traced through a Permanent Account Number (PAN). There is a
possibility that Koda's associates may have had different cards to
hide the exact income," sources said.
A number of PAN cards have been seized in Mumbai and Kolkata and
information related to their issuance and records is being obtained,
sources said.
The department will take the help of its various offices to check PAN
card details and various monetary transactions undertaken through
them, sources said.
Koda and his associates, including Binod Sinha and Sanjay Chowdhary,
have been accused by the IT department and the Enforcement Directorate
of having floated fictitious accounts and companies to route and
invest money through hawala channels.
chhotemianinshallah
Koda man put Rs 640cr, all in cash, in Mumbai bank
Pradeep Thakur, TNN 12 November 2009, 02:45am IST
NEW DELHI: This seems to be the biggest slip by an Indian financial
institution which is supposed to maintain heightened vigilance on
suspicious and high-value cash transactions. At least Rs 640 crore was
deposited in cash by one of the alleged front companies of former
Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda in a state-owned bank in Mumbai. The bank
failed to trigger an alert to countless intelligence agencies tasked
to keep a tab.
Income Tax officials investigating the case have found documentary
evidence of how the huge cash transactions took place in Mumbai
between 2006 and 2008 when Koda was at the helm of affairs in
Jharkhand.
Koda's alleged frontman Manoj Punamia deposited Rs 640 crore in cash
in Union Bank of India at its Zaveri Bazar branch between November
2006 and December 2008. The cash transactions were carried out by a
Balaji group company -- Balaji Universal Trade. The same group
operated by Punamia was earlier found to be behind hawala and legal
money transfers to the tune of $110 million to other front companies
of the cartel based in Dubai.
Sources said Enforcement Directorate (ED) had also found details of
the cartel's land investment in Bangkok worth Rs 100 crore. The agency
is examining an accused Vikas Sinha at their Delhi office while
Punamia is being questioned jointly by I-T and ED officials in
Mumbai.
Strange details have emerged during the cross-examination of accused
and verification of documents seized during raids. Balaji Universal
Trade, that had made huge cash deposits, is believed to have made Rs
991 crore of transactions with Union Bank alone. Sleuths are yet to
open many sealed almirahs and lockers that are likely to throw more
surprises.
Suspicious transactions going unnoticed have unnerved the government
which, for the first time, has realised that the anti-money laundering
mechanism it had set up in the wake of global pressure post-9/11 has
failed to give results.
As part of 'know your customer' guidelines issued by RBI, it is
mandatory for all banks and financial institutions to monitor
transactions of high-risk individuals and their intermediaries on a
day-to-day basis and report all suspicious transactions to the
Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), under Union finance ministry,
within seven days of getting such information or be liable for
punitive action.
It's surprising that the Mumbai bank failed to generate an alert when
such huge transactions were being carried out by a relatively unknown
firm, especially when the bank is believed to have appointed a
principal officer located at its head office who is responsible for
monitoring and reporting all suspicious transactions to FIU, apart
from maintaining close liaison with enforcement agencies.
All high-risk accounts have to be subjected to intensified monitoring
with periodical review of their risk categorisation in the fight
against money laundering and combating financing of terrorism.
As per the RBI directive, banks should verify the identify of the
person and seek information about the sources of funds before
accepting a suspicious customer or a concern. The decision to open an
account of such entity should be taken at a senior level and such
accounts should be subjected to enhanced monitoring on an ongoing
basis.
chhotemianinshallah
Koda's dad claims son locked up by taxmen
Pradeep Thakur, TNN 12 November 2009, 01:16am IST
NEW DELHI: Former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda's father,
Rasika, has approached finance minister Pranab Mukherjee claiming his
son, daughter-in-law and their two-year-old child were locked in their
house by investigating officers and all their external contacts were
disrupted.
"I have not been able to communicate with him even on telephone as all
his phones are either switched off or are not being picked up," Rasika
Koda said in a letter to the FM. The senior Koda said people visiting
his son were denied access on the ground that interrogation was being
conducted. "The lawyer of my son has also been denied conference with
him. This confinement for such a long time is casting shadow and
doubts," Rasika wrote.
"My son has recently undergone surgery and is not keeping well and
under these circumstances, his confinement for more than three days by
I-T authorities is highly unconstitutional and unlawful," Rasika
said.
"They have been trying to link him to businessmen and industrialists
of his constituency with whom he had no financial or commercial
transaction," Koda senior said. Commenting on the genesis of the
present case, Rasika said his son's political rivals had first filed a
PIL before the Jharkhand HC pursuant to which a vigilance case was
initiated.
chhotemianinshallah
Madhu Koda bought 600 vehicles to please supporters
IANS 11 November 2009, 03:03pm IST
RANCHI: Former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda, who was on
Wednesday interrogated for his role in a Rs.2,500 crore money
laundering scam, distributed hundreds of vehicles to supporters and
used the mines department and electricity board to expand his
financial empire, officials here said.
Koda, an independent Lok Sabha MP, purchased and distributed around
600 bikes, 25 to 30 Scorpios, Boleros and other four wheelers to his
supporters during the Lok Sabha elections this year, officials in the
income tax department said.
On Tuesday, informed sources said, IT sleuths searched two showrooms
of motor bikes and four wheelers. They found that 200 bikes had been
sold in one day from one showroom and have now sought help from the
transport department to seek registration details.
Koda is also charged with misusing his position as mines and geology
minister and later as chief minister. In the name of allocating mines,
Koda allegedly sent a recommendation to the central government
suggesting a list of names for the lease of 17 iron ore mines, sources
said.
The state government recommends to New Delhi the allocation of bauxite
and limestone as well as survey work of gold and diamonds.
He also used his influence to push certain private groups for the
lease of coal blocks, an official said.
The list is long, he added.
Koda is also accused of disposing of 40 files related to mines in just
one day in February 2008.
The IT department is scrutinising mines deals from 2004 onwards.
Koda's associates, according to sources, had approached a Gulf-based
company for limestone business. He also bought a mine in Liberia and
is said to have used his associates to purchase land in Thailand.
The charges against him include converting black money into white by
acquiring sick companies.
"We are trying to unearth the channels through which money was
generated and channelised inside the country and how they were sent to
foreign countries. The focus of investigation is Koda and his
associates," said an official, adding that they were acquiring new
information every day.
Koda and his associates, he added, got the momentum to generate money
when he became chief minister in September 2006 and kept key
departments like mines and geology as well as electricity board with
himself.
In the name of rural electrification, the official added, tenders
worth hundreds of crores were allegedly awarded to Koda associates.
On Oct 9, the ED filed a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering
Act (PMLA) against Koda, three more former ministers as well as his
associates Vinod Sinha and Sanjay Chaudhary. Vikas Sinha, brother of
Sinha, was on November sent to ED custody for 10 days.
The scam was unearthed Oct 31 following which Koda was admitted to
hospital with complaints of nausea and stomach ache. He was released
on Sunday and is being questioned at home.
Sid Harth
Congress shielding Koda and his associates: BJP
November 12th, 2009 - 7:33 pm ICT by IANS -
Ranchi, Nov 12 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Thursday
alleged that the Congress was trying to shield former Jharkhand chief
minister Madhu Koda, who is facing charges of laundering Rs.2,500
crore, and his associates.
State BJP president, Raghubar Das, in a joint press conference with
former chief minister and Lok Sabha MP Arjun Munda, said: “The
Congress is trying to shield Koda and his two associates Vinod Sinha
and Sanjay Chaudhary. The arrest warrants against Sinha and Chaudhary
were delayed deliberately to help them mitigate the evidence and
escape from the country.”
The Income Tax (IT) authorities Wednesday issued arrest warrants
against Sinha and Chaudhary.
Das said: “The way the Koda probe is being handled raises many
questions. We are not satisfied with the pace of investigations and it
seems there is a move to protect the people involved in the case.”
On the role of Arjun Munda as chief minister of a BJP government when
Koda was mines and geology minister, he said: “The final authority is
the central government to decide on iron ore mines allocation. The
state government only makes recommendation of mines. The role of the
central government should also be probed in mines allocation as the
investigation is from 2004 onwards - when the UPA (United Progressive
Alliance) was ruling the country.”
Arjun Munda, who was also chief minister from 2003 to September 2006,
said he was ready to face a CBI inquiry on mines allocation. “I am
with the state BJP president,” said Munda.
Das has demanded a CBI probe from 2001 onwards.
“As per media reports, in Koda’s diary the names of many Congress and
RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) leaders figure, and their roles should also
be probed,” said Das.
Sid Harth
Thousands throng Koda's residence
Jaideep Deogharia, TNN 9 November 2009, 11:05pm IST
RANCHI: A sea of humanity descended at the official residence of
former chief minister Madhu Koda on Monday after he was discharged
from Apollo Hospital.
Koda, now in income-tax and enforcement directorate (ED) net for his
unaccounted wealth amounting to whopping Rs 4,000 crore looked
definitely sick and morose.
His supporters from the Singbhum parliametary constituency virtually
laid a siege at his residence seeking an audience from their leader.
If the huge crowd and not less than 100 SUVs, at least two dozen of
them sparkling new and yet to be registered were any indication, Koda
certainly had some political scheme up his sleeves ahead of assembly
elections, which the party workers confirmed.
"We have come here in support of our leaders who are likely to get
ticket under the banner of Jharkhand Nav Nirman Morcha being floated
by Koda," said a supporter. But before he could have answered any
other question one Raju Bhaiya reminded him that speaking to media is
`forbidden'.
"The crowd started milling in from the afternoon and is swelling by
every hour," said a dhaba worker, which was located near Koda's
residence.
The mood of Koda's supporters was, however, belligerent. "We will not
speak anything. Come to Saranda if you have to report on the
constituency," said one of them.
Security guards at the gates kept a strict vigil on every passerby.
Two persons were taking the decision as to who should be allowed to
come inside and who should be stopped even as half of the house
remained sealed by the ED.
"Congress is trying to implicate him in false cases because it is
afraid of the support that Koda enjoys in his home constituency," said
one of the supporters.
"No political discussion is going inside and supporters have come to
rally behind Koda in his moment of crisis," clarified a supporter.
Sources also said that all the five candidates to represent Koda's
Jharkhand Nav Nirman Morcha from West Singhbhum district have been
finalized. While his wife Geeta Koda will contest from Jagannathpur,
names of Pappu Boipai from Chaibasa, Subhas Pat Pingua from Majhigaon,
Avinash Purti from Chakradharpur and Raju Sandil from Manoharpur are
the probable candidates.
Sid Harth
I-T starts interrogating Koda after week's gap
TNN 11 November 2009, 07:19am IST
RANCHI: The income-tax (I-T) department resumed interrogating Madhu
Koda in the alleged Rs 4,000-crore corruption and money-laundering
case on Tuesday.
Interrogation was stopped on November 3 after the former chief
minister was admitted to Apollo Hospital following complaints of high
blood pressure, abdominal pain and nausea.
Senior I-T officials said the department has recorded Koda's statement
and cross-checked it with documents seized from various places during
the nationwide raid on October 31. The officer said they were in no
position to comment until the department finished cross-checking his
statement.
"We are also trying to take help of international agencies, including
Interpol, to book the associates of Koda and his aides, Binod Sinha
and Sanjay Chaudhary," said a source, adding: "Till now, they have not
been able to interrogate people like Anil Bastawde and others, who
stay abroad and have been part of the hawala transaction."
In the meantime, I-T officials continued with the scrutiny of mining
deals signed during both Koda's reign as mines minister and chief
minister. He was mines minister under Arjun Munda from March 2005 to
September 2006. When he became chief minister in September 2006, he
kept the portfolio to himself.
"The interrogation of Devendra Mukhiya and former Chaibasa district
mining officer R N Prasad continued on Tuesday to find the details of
kickbacks Koda and his associates got to favour corporate houses for
recommending mining lease in the state," said a source.
Former state human resource development minister Bandhu Tirkey, on the
other hand, claimed that he has not been summoned by ED for
questioning. "I have not received any summons from ED," said Tirkey.
Also, reports said that Tirkey and his Cabinet colleagues, Bhanu
Pratap Sahi and Kamlesh Singh, have been summoned by ED to appear
before it in person on Wednesday.
bademiyansubhanallah
MINING SCAM
Patnaik gets BJP flak over illegal minning in Orissa
Jajati Karan / CNN-IBN
Published on Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 12:30
Bhubaneswar: Over the last nine years, hundreds of people in the
mineral belt in Orissa's Keonjhar district have suddenly turned
crorepatis(millionaires).
Much of this money possibly comes from illegal mining. Sources say
these minerals are transported through Jharkahand and Bihar to Nepal
and from there on to China and Bangladesh.
The opposition BJP is pointing fingers at Chief Minister Naveen
Patnaik
BJP Leader Chandan Mitra said, "All roads to this scam leads to Naveen
Niwas. It’s been done under the patronage of Naveen Patnaik and his
henchmen."
A petition filed by a local NGO in the Supreme Court says every year
mineral resources worth Rs 7,000 are openly looted.
Last week, the court acting on this petition, ordered its Central
Empowered Committee to investigate.
The Patnaik government, on its part arrested eight employees of the
mining department, stopped work in 69 mines and suspended trading
licenses of 500 operators.
Meanwhile, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said, "The vigilance
department is on the job to find out more on this illegal mining and
we will take serious action on those involved."
However, there is the obvious feeling that the big fish are still at
large.
Everyone knows a scam of this magnitude cannot happen without support
inside the government.
Chief Minister Patnaik is likely to face a tough time when the
Assembly convenes next week.
chhotemianinshallah
Congress, BJP in war of words over Koda scam
Indo-Asian News Service
New Delhi, November 14, 2009
First Published: 22:32 IST(14/11/2009)
Last Updated: 22:52 IST(14/11/2009)
With the first phase of Jharkhand assembly polls less than a fortnight
away, the war of words between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and
the Congress over the alleged corruption by former chief minister
Madhu Koda has intensified.
While BJP MP Prabhat Jha has written a letter to the President
Pratibha Patil demanding that Koda should be asked to reveal names of
all those involved in corruption, the Congress alleged that BJP had
made corruption "its work-culture" since it formed the first
government in the state and removed an honest leader like Babulal
Marandi from the chief minister's post.
In his letter to the president, Jha said the deeds of Koda, who was
supported in government formation by the Congress, the Rashtriya
Janata Dal (RJD) and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), have now come
out before the people of the state.
He said the episode had brought a bad name to Jharkhand.
The MP said that the threat given by Koda to expose everyone was a
clear indication that highly placed people were involved in the
massive corruption and demanded he be provided adequate security.
Referring to Koda's complaint of difficulties faced by him, Jha said
steps should be taken to see that he is safe, "All of us know that 13
of 15 witnesses in Bihar's fodder scam are no more," he said.
The BJP leader said that those behind the loot in Jharkhand could
resort to violence to prevent their names from being revealed.
Responding to BJP's allegations, Congress leader Mohan Prakash alleged
that the former had removed Marandi as chief minister in Jharkhand so
that it could indulge in loot of government funds.
The Congress is fighting polls in the state in alliance with Marandi's
Jharkhand Vikas Morcha.
bademiyansubhanallah
Koda leaves for native village; plays tribal crad
TNN 13 November 2009, 11:02pm IST
RANCHI: Madhu Koda left for his native village in Patahatu on Friday
after income tax officials gave him a break from the four-day
interrogation that began on Tuesday. Playing the tribal card, he said:
"There is a threat to my life. There is a conspiracy to annihilate me.
I know who are doing all this. Whatever is published in the media is
baseless. And, I am being harassed as I am a tribal belonging to a
poor family."
The former chief minister left for Patahatu after seeking a written
permission from the Enforcement Directorate saying his mother was not
well and also to monitor poll preparations in the Kolhan region where
six of his supporters will be in the poll fray as Independents. He,
however, did not wait for ED's confirmation for leaving Ranchi.
The ED though has extended the date of his interrogation from November
15 to 19 following a request from Koda, sources said. The
interrogations will be held in Ranchi and not Delhi as proposed
earlier.
Koda slipped to Chaibasa silently on Friday afternoon and spoke to
media only after reaching his home constituency. Claiming innocence,
he described the entire episode of IT and ED raids as a political
farce and said that he was deliberately being prevented from meeting
his workers before polls.
"I have written a letter to the ED and IT officials informing them
about my plan to stay in home constituency and monitor election
preparations. But I came here before getting a reply to avoid any
further delay," he told mediapersons.
Koda blamed IT officials for framing concocted charges against him
without evidence to back their claims. "IT and ED officials have
issued self-contradictory statements regarding the volume of money and
wealth they are trying to associate with me. Sometimes they say Rs
1,300 crore, next day it is Rs 4,000 crore and then again, Rs 2,000
crore. I challenge them to give documentary evidence of any wealth
that I have amassed here or abroad," he asserted.
Without naming any party, Koda said: "As some leaders do not want a
tribal to flourish in politics, they are implicating me and trying to
prevent me from taking part in preparations for the Assembly
elections."
Koda even expressed his desire to remain in his constituency till the
election gets over and is learnt to have requested the IT officials to
spare him from interrogation for that period.
Media in-charge of Koda's proposed Jharkhand Nav Nirman Morcha, Manish
Gupta, said Koda was likely to remain in the constituency and monitor
poll preparations. "He had to go to Patahatu to see his ailing
mother," he added.
The IT officials, incidentally, were tight-lipped as to how Koda left
home as they had claimed earlier that his interrogation was on.
bademiyansubhanallah
Maoists got 30% cut in Koda's Jharkhand plunder
Pradeep Thakur, TNN 15 November 2009, 01:40am IST
NEW DELHI: Maoists never tire of styling themselves as the vanguard of
resistance to the plunder of resources in the tribal-dominated
regions, citing this as one of the justifications for "class warfare".
But as the investigation into the gigantic Jharkhand scam progresses,
it turns out they were party to the loot of natural resources,
cornering a big share of booty from the "illegal mining" that
allegedly thrived during Madhu Koda's chief ministership.
Interrogation of four aides of the former Jharkhand CM, including his
personal assistant Harinder Singh, at the Delhi office of the
Enforcement Directorate (ED) reveals Koda issued about 200 prospective
mining leases -- for exploration of minerals in the state -- besides
40 for mining.
Though prospective mining leases were not permitted to mine scarce
resources, in most of the cases, businessmen who procured those, it
has come to light, resorted to large-scale mining. The share of the
illegal activity was equally distributed among politicians,
bureaucrats and the ultras who charged a hefty fee for providing
protection to the illegal operation, say officials.
Sources said the Koda aide admitted that the political establishment
received Rs 10 lakh per acre at the time of issue of such a licence
(total area extends to over hundreds of acres) while the Naxalites got
20%-30% on each truck of resources taken out of such a mine. The
bureaucrats who were supposed to check any illegal activity received
10%-15% of the share of the minerals and the remainder about 50% was
the businessmen's share in the loot.
The list of those who benefited from Koda's generosity includes a
leading Indian steel manufacturer and a London-based tycoon. Also
linked to the nexus are some politicians and bureaucrats who benefited
handsomely. As ED estimates Koda & Co's worth in several hundreds of
crores in rupees, Maoists, it seems, had benefited equally from the
nefarious deals.
Cross-examination of one of the alleged Koda frontman and promoter of
Balaji Bullion group of companies Manoj Punamia reveals the latter had
been working for many other high-profile people and that Koda was not
the only "business" he had in his basket.
His negotiations for an SEZ in Noida worth Rs 4,800 crore, where
payment was to be allegedly made in Euros, and his other real estate
contracts worth hundreds of crores in UP hint at his wide network
across political affiliations and state boundaries. His expertise in
managing "entries" and handling high-value cash transactions in banks
and through hawala only helped his benefactors to launder big money in
India and abroad.
Though Koda remains the prime focus of the investigation by a joint
team of the Income Tax and ED, sleuths are also looking at various
linkages that have cropped up during the course of investigation. A
senior official associated with the probe said several bureaucrats and
other politicians can come under the scanner but it is too early to
pinpoint anybody. The agency is gathering corroborative evidence
against all such people.
The ED has summoned Punamia to Delhi for questioning on November 17
and Koda on November 19. So far, the agency has found no evidence of
Punamia and his associates conducting bullion trade as claimed by
them, sources said.
bademiyansubhanallah
CBI finds bribe trail in officer's wealth
Poornima Swaminathan / DNA Monday, November 16, 2009 1:52 IST
Mumbai: A posting at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust between 2002 and
2006 threw open the floodgates for VK Agarwal, the arrested additional
commissioner of customs and central excise, to make a fast buck.
Officers from the CBI's Anti-Corruption Bureau came to know of this
after interrogating Agarwal over the weekend, an officer said.
Agarwal and his wife Prameela, a head clerk with the Central Railway,
were arrested for having assets disproportionate to their known
sources of income.
When they were arrested, the officer said, assets worth at least Rs45
lakh was found unaccounted for. "This is more than 100% of his
legitimate income," he said. "He earned a huge amount of money in the
form of bribes from fabric exporters by quoting a lower value of their
products."
He overlooked the duty taxes and sought huge sums to remain mum about
the malpractice, the officer said. Investigators have found two flats
owned by Agarwal in the city. He had invested in the stock market too.
The CBI is trying to find out if he had other accomplices.
"His wife has been booked for abetting corruption. We are
investigating if she too misused her official powers," the officer
said. The CBI has found several fixed deposits and share certificates
in her name. "The net value is more than known sources of income."
The CBI plans to raid his hometown and record the statements of
relatives whose names have cropped up in the list of investments.
Agarwal had been charged with corruption in 2006.
chhotemianinshallah
Corruption becomes Jharkhand poll plank
16 Nov 2009, 2231 hrs IST, ET Bureau
RANCHI: The recent raids on former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda
by income tax (I-T) and enforcement directorate (ED) officials have
brought corruption at the centre stage of Jharkhand politics.
The JMM, which released its manifesto on Sunday, has promised to put
an end to corruption in the state. Though the Congress and the BJP are
yet to release their manifesto, their leaders said the issue will be a
major election plank.
Senior Congress leader and Union minister for food processing Subodh
Kant Sahay said corruption will be a major issue in the state assembly
elections. "While we favour thorough enquiry into corruption charges
during the Madhu Koda regime, we also want that the same should be
done for the Arjun Munda tenure as well," he said.
Former Union external affairs minister and senior BJP leader Yashwant
Sinha said: "While we welcome probe into illegal deals by Madhu Koda,
we would also like the investigating agencies to probe the involvement
of industrial houses and the bureaucrats as well. In fact, the Centre
should set up a commission to probe the entire gamut of the Madhu Koda
scam."
Mr Sinha added that the CBI should also be asked to probe into the
matter since ED and I-T have certain limitations. "Since there is a
transaction of huge amount to foreign countries, only CBI can ask
other countries for details," he said.
Besides the Koda scam, cases of corruption against former Independent
ministers like Ainosh Ekka, Harinarayan Rai, Bandhu Tirkey and Kamlesh
Singh are also likely to figure during the campaigning. The vigilance
department is investigating corruption charges against them.
The Congress, which had supported Koda-led UPA government, promised it
will keep a distance from tainted politicians after the elections.
Party spokesperson Radha Krishna Kishore said "The party will not take
support from any tainted politician, even if the need arises post-
polls.
The BJP has also assured that it would not like to support any leader
involved in corruption. "We would, in fact, like the people to vote
for us in a big way so that need for a coalition does not arise," said
state BJP president Raghubar Das.
chhotemianinshallah
SC turns down Maya plea in Taj scam case
17 Nov 2009, 0401 hrs IST, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday turned down the plea of UP
chief minister Mayawati challenging Allahabad High Court notice to her
on a PIL seeking re-opening of Rs 175-crore Taj Corridor case against
her. The apex court rejected the CM’s plea that the opposition parties
may draw political mileage from the issue.
“We are not bothered about what the opposition is going to demand,”
said a bench comprising Justice VS Sirpurkar and Justice B Sudershan
Reddy.
Senior Counsel K K Venugopal appearing for Ms Mayawati submitted
before the bench that the PIL has the propensity to destabilise the UP
government. The PIL, if allowed to be heard, would give the opposition
an excuse to demand her government’s resignation, said Mr Venugopal.
The court, however, was not impressed with the submission.
“Destabilisation? Why should we go into all those things”? remarked
the bench. The bench also refused to borrow the plea that the case was
politically motivated and four other similar petitions on the same
issue were earlier dismissed by the apex court.
The judges said that they found no reason to interfere with the high
court order. However, the bench gave liberty to Ms Mayawati to raise
the issue of maintainability of the PIL before the high court.
The high court had issued notices to Ms Mayawati and her cabinet
colleague Naseemuddin Siddiqui on the PIL filed by Kamlesh Verma and
two others seeking resumption of proceedings against the CM in the
multi-crore case.
In June 2007, the CBI court had discharged Ms Mayawati and Mr Siddiqui
in the case on the ground that then governor T.V.Rajeshwar declined to
grant permission for her prosecution.
chhotemianinshallah
Congress, BJP cross swords in Koda scam
16 Nov 2009, 2251 hrs IST, PTI
NEW DELHI: The war of words between the BJP and the Congress over
alleged corruption by former Jharkand chief minister Madhu Koda
intensified today after he attempted to implicate the main UPA
constituent in the hawala scam.
Just days before the multi-phased elections in Jharkand, the BJP upped
the ante and targeted the Congress demanding that the list of the
beneficiaries in the Rs 2,000 crore money laundering scam be
disclosed.
The Congress hit back at BJP saying it has "no credentials" to speak
on corruption. The Congress also rejected any assertion of "linkages"
with Koda.
"The government should make public the list of people who have
benefitted from profits of crime and corruption," senior BJP leader
Arun Jaitely told reporters here.
Jaitley said the BJP feared that since Jharkhand was under President's
Rule, the Centre could influence the investigating agencies to protect
people who are alliance partners of UPA.
"The diary of Madhu Koda is a list of beneficiaries. The case should
reach a logical conclusion and not end up in the media as mere news
reports," he said.
Facing attack from BJP and unperturbed by reports that the seized
diaries of Koda contained names of Congress leaders, AICC spokesman
Manish Tewari told reporters, "We reject the assertion on linkages."
"It(Koda scam) is a matter being investigated. It is not my job to
second guess any investigation. The law of the land is for everybody
to follow," he said.
To a query whether the muck on Koda would smear the face of Congress
as it extended support to his government for almost two years,Tewari
replied in the negative and maintained that the party supported the
government from outside and was not a participant it.
chhotemianinshallah
Conman vs conman
17 Nov 2009, 0352 hrs IST, Ashok K Mishra, ET Bureau
PATNA: Manoj Punamia, the Mumbai-based hawala dealer who acted as a
front man for former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda in the multi-
crore money laundering scam, had even set his eyes on a Rajya Sabha
seat. He has claimed that he paid Rs 2 crore to a middleman who
claimed he had close links with the top Congress leadership.
Punamia has himself made this disclosure in a letter written to the
Delhi Police commissioner informing him about how he was duped by M S
Khan, who had promised him nomination in the Rajya Sabha with the help
of two top Congress leaders.
Punamia, who has already been quizzed by the Income Tax and
Enforcement Directorate sleuths for diverting the ill-gotten money of
Koda and company to foreign destinations through the hawala route, had
written the letter to the Delhi Police commissioner on September 15,
2009.
The letter could have been a clever move on Punamia’s part and those
involved in the scam to scuttle the I-T raids which started from
October 31, 2009. “The reference to Congress leaders in the letter was
a conscious ploy to derail our investigation against Koda and company.
But it boomeranged on them,” said a source in ED.
Even before the nation-wide I-T raids were launched on the residential
and other locations of Mr Koda and his associates, things were
becoming increasingly clear that I-T and ED would initiate action
against them.
I-T officials were working on the Koda scam case for nearly a year and
those involved in the scam were aware of the developments. More
significantly, a PIL was filed by Lakshman Oraon in the Jharkhand high
court in August, 2008, seeking a probe into the Koda mining scam.
So when things were increasingly getting tough for Mr Koda and those
involved in the hawala transactions, Punamia’s letter was seen as
possibly a well thought-out design to pre-empt I-T’s action against
them. “Those involved in the scam may have thought that the inclusion
of names of Congress leaders in the letter may scare the UPA
government and would restrain I-T and ED from initiating any action in
the illegal hawala transactions of Mr Koda and associates. But nothing
of this kind happened,” said an ED official.
In the letter written to the Delhi Police commissioner, Punamia has
given a detailed account of how he was cheated by Khan who was
introduced to him by one Ajai Tiwari, a resident of Ghaziabad.
“Khan assured me that he would get me nominated to the Rajya Sabha. On
one occasion he even got talk to a person on phone claiming to be a
Congress leader, who demanded Rs 10 core for the job. I even paid Rs 1
crore to Ajay Tiwari on September 1, 2009, who later passed on the
amount to Khan at Lalit Hotel, New Delhi. Thereafter, Rs 1 crore was
again paid to Khan at the Claridges Hotel parking, New Delhi,” he has
written in the letter.
bademiyansubhanallah
Koda & Co under I-T lens since 2007
17 Nov 2009, 0738 hrs IST, Pradeep Thakur, TNN
NEW DELHI: The strong protest from former Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda
notwithstanding, sleuths involved in the probe against Koda &
associates claim they had enough material in hand before the raids
were launched on the cartel.
The surveillance by intelligence agencies on Koda began as early as
2007 when the independent MLA was still the chief minister of
Jharkhand.
At Income Tax, authorities had prepared a 360 degree profile around
Madhu Koda, the tribal leader who was brought to head the government
by the UPA government in 2006 in a hung assembly where no single
alliance had a clear majority.
The 360 degree profile is a financial trail of high-flying individuals
whose rich lifestyle seldom matches their known sources of income.
Profiles are being constructed around individuals and companies whose
meteoric rise and flamboyance paint a suspicious picture.
The building of such profiles involves monitoring of call records of a
target and his associates, linking their financial track with the data
related to them obtained from Annual Information Reports (AIRs) from
financial institutions such as banks, registrar of societies and other
information from intelligence agencies.
Phone bills, network of friends and business associates, hotel
expenses, travel details, including charges paid, credit card
expenses, club membership, swanky cars, association and ownership of
companies and their business activities all have been recorded around
individuals and companies concerned to give an absolute picture of the
target whose 360 degree profile is made.
The span of the I-T raids on Koda and his aides on October 31,
involving 400 officials from the I-T investigation and ED in searches
conducted over 70 premises spread across eight states, illustrates the
wealth of information the department had gathered.
The ED had by then dug out information and carried out paper trail
revealing the cartel’s business interests in Singapore, Thailand,
Dubai and Liberia, besides India. All this formed part of the ED’s
case registered against Koda and three of his former cabinet
colleagues under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The raids on Balaji Bullion group of companies at Zaveri Bazar in
Mumbai and the involvement of Sinha brothers, Bikas and Vikas, Sanjay
Choudhary, Manoj Punamia and the revelations of mills belonging to the
alleged cartel at Chandil and Jamshedpur was part of the information
the agencies had before they raided the premises of accused.
bademiyansubhanallah
IT betters govt service, but fails to check bribery: IIMA study
17 Nov 2009, 0617 hrs IST, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: Even as the Indian government seeks to modernise its ailing
and corrupt departments by deploying software and computer hardware
solutions, bribery rates continue to rise, according to a recent study
by IIM-Ahmedabad.
According to the IIM study, average bribe paid to obtain a land record
statement across 12 Indian states decreased by only Rs 16 to Rs 89
after computerisation of the respective departments. For instance,
percentage of people who paid bribe in MP to obtain a land record
remained at 90%, while it shot up from 20% to 50% in Orissa even after
IT implementation.
“Only putting IT hardware like a camera, scanner and printer reduces
the manual work done and thus delivery time. But the discretion of a
officer to deny or accept or application is still there. If that is
transferred to a computer system, it can greatly reduce corruption,”
said Prof. Subhash Bhatnagar of IIM Ahmedabad who worked on this
project. “For this to work, process re-engineering is needed in all
departments which is sadly not happening,” he added.
Indian citizens also had to visit government departments often for
seeking redressal or information, the survey added. However, the
number of visits came down slightly to 2.8 from 4 after
computerisation.
Meanwhile, middlemen continue to charge bribes, especially in property-
related issues where average commission paid is around Rs 2,550 per
transaction. Average bribes at the property and transport departments
in the country remained at about Rs 1,080 and Rs 180, respectively.
Reduction in bribes was almost nil in the property and transport
departments across most states like HP, Orissa, Rajasthan, Delhi and
West Bengal, even after computerisation.
However, Delhi witnessed a significant drop in average number of
bribery cases from 70% to 20% after computerisation was achieved.
Citizens, meanwhile, did benefit from computerisation despite existing
corruption levels because quality of service improved. Average number
of visits for getting work done reduced, resulting in faster delivery
of services in many instances. So getting a property deed made or a
driving licence issued was faster, even though corruption remained.
Road transport, land record and property are three of the seven state
mission mode projects (MMPs) being implemented under the $6 billion
National e-governance plan. The other MMPs are IT implementation in
police, gram panchayats, treasuries and municipality.
The study also captured abysmal level of services in places where IT
implementation has not taken place. Even in a simple service like
issue of land records, the elapsed time (from submission of
application to issue of just a receipt of it) took 21 days. For
property registration and issue of a driving licence, it was a
whopping 33 and 21 days respectively in places where manual work was
being done, said the survey.
bademiyansubhanallah
India 84th most corrupt country in the world, says survey
PTI Wednesday, November 18, 2009 1:05 IST
New Delhi: Transparency International (TI) still perceives India to be
among the most corrupt countries. In its annual index, the global
watchdog has ranked the nation 84th on a list of 180 countries in
terms of public-sector corruption.
While releasing the list naming and shaming the world's most corrupt
countries, TI has, for the first time, recommended that tax havens
such as Switzerland and Liechtenstein should do away with secrecy in
banking laws.
"Corrupt money must not find a safe haven. It's time to put an end to
secrecy in banking laws," the Berlin-based group's head Huguette
Labelle said.
Somalia, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Sudan and Iraq are the bottom five
nations, while the cleanest countries with ranking close to perfect 10
are New Zealand, Denmark and Singapore.
According to the corruption perception index, India scored 3.4, much
lower than Bhutan which scored 5 and claimed the 49th spot on the
list.
India's corruption index is the same as last year. But in the last
five years, the country shown significant improvement.
In 2004, India had scored 2.8, claiming the 90th spot on a list of 146
countries.
This year, developing countries such as Serbia, Burkina Faso, Peru and
Ghana fared better than India claiming 83rd, 79th, 75th and 69th
spots. China scored 3.6, slightly better than India.
Neighbouring Nepal claimed the 143rd position, Pakistan scored 2.4
claiming the 139th position along with Bangladesh, while Sri Lanka
scored 3.1 and stood at the 97th position.
Nearly half the countries scored three or less on the scale of zero
(indicating most corrupt) to 10 (indicating least corrupt) showing
that corruption is rampant across the world.
"Transparency International has found that a strong correlation
between corruption and poverty continues to exist, jeopardising the
global fight against poverty and threatening to derail the United
Nations millennium development goals," Admiral (retd) RH Tahiliani,
chairman of Transparency International, India), said.
chhotemianinshallah
ED seeks legal opinion to nail evasive Koda
21 Nov 2009, 0330 hrs IST, Ashok K Mishra, ET Bureau
PATNA: Cocking a snook at the investigating agencies, those facing the
probe in connection with the money laundering scam, including former
Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda, may actually be working to a plan
by not turning up for the interrogation by the Enforcement Directorate
(ED) and Income Tax (I-T) officials.
The ED has now sought legal opinion regarding Mr Koda, who has not
only ignored the summons but has also shot off a letter to the
investigating agency placing some riders for his interrogation.
The ED officials are clearly of the view there was a method to what
the accused were doing by not cooperating with the investigating
agency. ``Possibly they want to delay the pace of investigation. Or
they could be buying time to tie and cover their loose ends,” remarked
an ED official
On his part, Mr Koda has maintained that as an MP he was entitled to
certain privileges and that the office of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha
should be duly informed about his interrogation. He has also insisted
that the summon notice should come to him at least 10 days in
advance.
The ED is, however, vested with sufficient powers to arrest Mr Koda on
the ground of non-compliance of the summon notice.
But it may not be willing to exercise this option at this juncture as
his arrest could have a political bearing on the Jharkhand assembly
elections. Mr Koda has fielded his wife Geeta from his traditional
Jagannathpur assembly seat, besides four other candidates in his
native West Singhbhum district. The investigating agency obviously
will not like Mr Koda to take any political advantage if he was
arrested.
The ED instead has now sought legal opinion from the Additional
Solicitor General of India following some of the issues raised by Mr
Koda regarding his interrogation.
All this could mean that any action against Mr Koda will be initiated
by the ED only on the basis of legal advice. In case of other accused
who too are not turning up for interrogation, the ED has now
approached the court for the issuance of arrest warrants against
them.
“We may also press for the attachment of property particularly of
Binod Kumar Sinha and Sanjay Kumar Chaudhary, the two key Koda
associates who wave gone into hiding,” said sources in the ED.
The ED may also act tough with the hawala dealer Manoj Punamia who too
failed to appear before the ED last time.
chhotemianinshallah
Delhi government favouring influential convicts: High Court
20 Nov 2009, 1743 hrs IST, PTI
NEW DELHI: Taking exception to the way parole was granted to Jessica
Lall murder case convict Manu Sharma, the Delhi High Court on Friday
pulled up the city government for giving preferential treatment to
convicts having high connections.
Justice Kailash Gambhir said that in normal cases the government takes
three to six months to decide a parole application of a convict but in
case of Manu Sharma it disposed off his plea within 20 days.
"The list (regarding number of parole applications) depicts a dismal
picture showing the government is giving least priority to parole
applications of convicts. No doubt the home department has given
selective treatment to some convicts because of their high
connections," Justice Gambhir said.
The court made the observations on a petition filed by Sumeer Singh, a
convict in the Connaught Place shooting case, seeking parole for three
months to file an appeal in the Supreme Court against his conviction
on the ground that his family members were illiterate.
The court, showing displeasure over the lax approach of the
government, had on November 10 issued notice to the city government's
Home Secretary to personally appear before it to explain the delay in
dealing with applications of parole despite its clear directives in
this regard.
The court had on the last hearing on November 10 taken strong
exception to the government not following its directions with regard
to parole matters.
"Already this court has given direction that the parole applications
moved by the convicts be given due priority and the same be decided
within a period of 10 days and it appears that the directions given by
this court are being implemented more in violations than in
compliance," the court had said.
The high court had also directed the government to file a list of
parole applications received by it so far this year.
Sharma, who was released on parole from Tihar jail on September 22 on
the ground of his mother's illness, was reportedly spotted in a
nightclub in a hotel in the city, triggering a controversy. He then
returned to the Tihar Jail on his own on Novemeber 10.
Sid Harth
Show full of sound and fury as Koda fails to spill beans
B Sridhar, TNN 18 November 2009, 10:13pm IST
CHAIBASA: Former chief minister Madhu Koda failed to roar as promised.
For, his threat to expose his conspirators in the multi-crore hawala
scam at the Hunkar rally the much-hyped show of strength at the Gandhi
Maidan here on Wednesday remained a mere show at the end of the day.
Although reiterating that he was a victim of a poltical conspiracy,
Koda failed to name any of the abettors. However, if the crowd of
around 4,000 was any indication of Koda's popularity, then it was
evident that he continued to enjoy the support of his workers and
sympathizers.
The MP, without spilling the beans, alleged that two national parties
had conspired to finish him off politically and the probe into his
alleged amassing of wealth was nothing but a plot to malign him before
the Assembly polls.
"Upset over my win as an Independent in the Lok Sabha election, the
parties hatched a conspiracy to belittle my stature in state politics
by implicating me in false cases," Koda told the gathering as slogans
of "Kolhan Tiger" rent the air.
The packed ground displayed a festive mood and supporters were equal
in orchestrating their support to the tribal leader. "The storm will
pass soon and Kodaji will emerge more mature and confident after
that," a Koda loyalist said. Party members donning fashionable
headgears arrived beating drums and nagaras, (traditional drum).
Launching a scathing attack on the Opposition, Koda reiterated that
his meteoric rise in state politics had earned him many enemies and
that all the charges about his involvement in the financial scam were
part of a well-thought out plan of the Opposition parties to eliminate
him from state politics.
Surprisingly, Rasika Koda, his father, who had all along maintained a
distance from his son during his political journey, sounded upbeat,
too. "The crowd has come to boost my son's morale,"said the senior
Koda at the former CM's office-cum-residence here on Wednesday
morning.
Vowing to fight to the last, Koda said: "Ensure victory for all the
seven candidates of my party and then you will see how equations
change." Geeta, in her short speech, merely said her husband was
"innocent" and had been implicated falsely. She also exhorted the
womenfolk to rally behind her husband.
Talking to newspersons briefly after the meeting, Koda said he had not
received any summons from the income tax or the Enforcement
Directorate yet for questioning in Ranchi on Thursday. However, he
added that if he receives the summons, he will happily go to Ranchi
for the interrogation.
Koda, of course, added in haste that it would not be possible for him
to go to Delhi for interrogation during the polls.
chhotemianinshallah
Koda says he will report to ED only after Jharkhand polls
Press Trust of India / Jamshedpur November 21, 2009, 14:37 IST
Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda, who has failed to appear
before the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the money
laundering case against him, today said he would be available for
questioning only after the Assembly polls.
"The summons by the ED were delivered at my Ranchi residence only on
November 18, a day before the appearance when I was busy campaigning
(for assembly polls) in Chaibasa," Koda said here when asked by
reporters why he failed to appear before the agency on November 19.
Koda said he would be available only after the conclusion of Jharkhand
state Assembly polls on December 18. The former Jharkhand Chief
Minister has put up six candidates, including his wife Gita on behalf
of Jharkhand Navanirman Morcha for the polls.
"Moreover, the ED wanted certain documents like passport, which I
don't have as they must be with either the income tax authorities or
vigilance department (both the agencies had raided Koda's residence).
Unless I get them how can I show them," he said.
He refused to comment on his 'aides' Sanjay Choudhary and Binod Sinha,
who are facing arrest warrants following the raid by Income Tax
authorities on about 70 premises, including Koda's residences, and
unearthed documents that allegedly pointed to hawala transactions and
illegal investment to the tune of over Rs 2,000 crore.
chhotemianinshallah
Who created 'plunderer' Koda?
Anil Anand / DNA Sunday, November 22, 2009 0:34 IST
Dhanbad (Jharkhand): This tribal-dominated state is facing an
electoral wave of a different kind. Keeping aside the spiralling
prices and caste permutations and combinations, the flavour of the
ongoing five-phase state Assembly elections is former chief minister
Madhu Koda. He has become the favourite whipping boy for the political
rivals for reasons suiting their respective political motives.
The saga of Koda's alleged corrupt practices that took places during
his tenure as the chief minister seemed to have become his nemesis.
Who is responsible for creating Koda the politician? This is the
question being hotly debated between the main rivals, Congress and the
BJP.
Koda was an RSS man and had entered the Assembly for the first time as
a BJP legislator and became the mines minister in the dispensation.
And thus started his tryst with the minting money. On their part the
BJP holds the Congress solely responsible for giving Koda the "free
run" while backing him as chief minister for nearly two years. Why
didn't they withdraw the support, the party chief Rajnath Singh asked.
The Congress is hard-pressed to explain as to why the party took so
much time to act against Koda and his aides and stop them from
plundering the newly-carved state. On record the party leaders
pinpoint to the mass agitation launched by them, under Maken's
leadership, against Koda while he was in office. Off the record, they
cite compulsions of the coalition to have acted against them as their
erstwhile allies Laloo Yadav (RJD) and Shibu Soren (Jharkhand Mukti
Morcha) had thwarted moves to disturb the Koda government.
Sensing that Rs4000 crore corruption charges against Koda was a
potential vote garnering issue, the Congress has stepped up its anti-
corruption campaign. And as part of this strategy pushed Maken into
electioneering as he was the sort of whistleblower who had first
started the anti-Koda campaign while being AICC incharge of Jharkhand.
Maken rejected the BJP charge that the Congress had patronized Koda
while he was the chief minister. "We had gone after him even at that
time and a concerted campaign was launched by the Congress from block
to the state level to expose his corrupt practices but not before
serving an ultimatum to him to perform before he perished," he said.
In fact, the Koda saga has brought the Congress into reckoning in the
state elections as it has been sitting in the Opposition for the last
nine years. Koda aside, certain others reasons such as the Muslim and
backward class voters turning towards the Congress is also helping the
party.
bademiyansubhanallah
Koda shadow may eclipse Cong-JVM in Singhbhum
Manoj Prasad
Posted: Monday , Nov 23, 2009 at 0049 hrs
Ranchi:
Scam-tainted former chief minister Madhu Koda may turn out to be a
spoilsport for the Congress and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) in the
prestigious East Singhbhum district, giving the upper hand to the
BJP.
This district, adjoining Chaibasa, the hometown of Koda, has
traditionally been a battleground of the BJP and JMM due to the
polarised electorate, with the upper castes, business community and
OBCs backing the former and the Dalits and Adivasis supporting the
latter.
Among the six constituencies of the district, three — East Jamshedpur,
West Jamshedpur and Jugsalai — are represented by heavyweights: former
minister Raghubar Das (BJP), Sarayu Rai (BJP) and former minister
Dulal Bhuiyan (JMM) respectively. In these seats, the candidates which
the Congress and JVM, led by former chief minister Babulal Marandi,
have put up are: Abhay Singh (JVM), Banna Gupta (Congress) and Ritika
Mukhi (Congress).
What goes against the Congress-JVM alliance here is a combination of
two factors: one, the Congress and RJD had backed the Koda government
during 2006-08; two, the allotment of tickets by them to defectors —
Singh, who was earlier with the RJD, and Gupta, a former Samajwadi
Party leader.
Since Koda has been booked in a Rs 4,000-crore case following
nationwide raids on his properties, corruption has become a central
plank in this election with a perception gaining ground that if Koda
has looted the public funds with impunity, it was courtesy the
Congress, JMM and the RJD.
Besides, Hidayatullah Khan, a history sheeter, who had quit the LJP to
join the Congress only to be denied ticket by it, is at daggers drawn
with the party’s West Jamshedpur nominee Gupta. Similar is the case
with JVM’s candidate Singh, who is being opposed by the party’s
workers led by its secretary Ashok Singh.
In Jugsalai, JMM’s Dulal Bhuiyan is being challenged by two women
candidates — the Congress’s Ritika Mukhi and the BJP’s Rakhi Rai, who
had recently joined the party after quitting All Jharkhand Students’
Union.
bademiyansubhanallah
Rs800 crore in Swiss accounts of Koda aides, say officials
DNA Correspondent Monday, November 23, 2009 3:55 IST
New Delhi: Nearly Rs800 crore of Indian taxpayers' money, allegedly
plundered by former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda and company,
is believed to have found its way to accounts in Swiss banks.
The enforcement directorate (ED), which had sent a special team to
Switzerland, has found bank accounts registered in the names of Koda's
associates, including some local politicians, bureaucrats and key
middlemen, sources close to the investigations said. But none of the
accounts is in Koda's name.
Till now, these accounts and their size was a matter of speculation.
The ED team has found that the money was parked in eight to nine such
accounts, the sources said.
Switzerland is not the only country that has seen quiet visits from
Indian probe agencies after the scam was unearthed.
ED teams have gathered crucial evidence from other tax havens,
including the Bahamas and the Cayman islands. A special team has also
been despatched to the north African country of Liberia, where Koda is
alleged to have purchased mines worth $17 lakh.
Considering the politically sensitive nature and the sheer magnitude
of the alleged embezzlement, the enforcement directorate has formed a
special unit to probe the case. The unit is single-mindedly
unravelling the business empire Koda allegedly established first as a
minister and then as the chief minister of Jharkhand.
Top officials connected with the case indicate that the ED is no hurry
to arrest Koda. The former chief minister, who has been accused of
embezzling and laundering nearly Rs4,000 crore, has so far taken a
defiant stand, failing to appear for questioning despite summons being
issued against him twice, including on November 19.
"We are building a very strong case against him and his associates.
Lot of evidence has already been gathered from some foreign countries
besides the documents, evidence and confessions that we already have.
When we will finally arrest him, he won't be able to get bail," said a
senior finance ministry official attached with the probe.
Meanwhile, a Prevention of Money Laundering Act court in Ranchi issued
an arrest warrant against key Koda associate Boinod Sinha, who has
been evading questioning and, like the former Jharkhand chief
minister, has failed to appear before the ED despite repeated summons.
Sinha was the one who allegedly coordinated money deals on behalf of
Koda.
bademiyansubhanallah
dalits muslims koda rajya sabha RS
RS adjourns twice, once over Koda
PTI
First Published : 24 Nov 2009 11:33:27 AM IST
Last Updated : 24 Nov 2009 12:41:39 PM IST
NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha was today adjourned twice during Question Hour
over separate issues, including the alleged multi-crore scam involving
former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda.
The House was adjourned for 10 minutes soon after it met for the day
when Ali Anwar (JD-U) created a ruckus over alleged leakage of the
Ranganath Misra Committee report on reservation to dalit Christians
and dalit Muslims.
Anwar said the report has been published in a newspaper and sought
Government's response.
Chairman Hamid Ansari said he could raise the issue during zero hour
but the Question Hour should not be disrupted.
As the member did not relent, Ansari adjourned the House for 10
minutes and called leaders of all parties to his chamber for
discussion.
When the House reassembled, M Venkaiah Naidu (BJP) raised the issue of
a "massive fraud and scam" in Jharkhand saying the man in the dock,
Madhu Koda, was propelled by Congress to the chair of the chief
minister of the state.
"The person (Koda) needs to be put behind the bars immediately and the
issue discussed in the House," he said.
Naidu also said the Liberhan Commission report on the Babri Masjid
demolition was "leaked" to divert attention from the Jharkhand scam.
His comment was vociferously countered by ruling benches, prompting
BJP members to raise slogans.
In the din, Ansari said, "I am afraid that members are not willing to
abide by the agreement made" and adjourned the House till 1200 noon -
the second adjournment during the pre- lunch sitting.
chhotemianinshallah
BJP asks why arrest warrant not issued against Koda
STAFF WRITER 16:52 HRS IST
Ranchi, Nov 24 (PTI) The BJP today asked why a warrant of arrest was
not issued against former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda in the
money-laundering scam though he failed to honour the Enforcement
Directorate summons for appearance.
"Despite Koda ignoring the Enforcement Directorate's summons, nothing
is happening against him. Why not an arrest warrant is being issued as
he failed to honour the summons," BJP secretary and Rajya Sabha
member, Prabhat Jha, said.
"Koda should be arrested so that the names written in the diary found
during searches by the Income Tax department are revealed," he told a
press conference here.
The ED had issued separate summons on November 13, 15 and 19 asking
Koda to appear before it. He responded with a letter to the ED saying
that he would be available for questioning only after the conclusion
of the Assembly elections.
Sid Harth
Naveen Patnaik under pressure to come clean on mining scam issue
25 Nov 2009, 2009 hrs IST, Nageshwar Patnaik, ET Bureau
BHUBANESWAR: Faced with the prospect of Union government seeking CBI
probe before the Orissa High Court in a public interest litigation
case, the Naveen Patnaik government has started taking the multi-crore
mining scam issue seriously by taking help of latest technology and
punishing the culprits.
As the mine lease holders were accused of going beyond their
stipulated lease area, the Orissa government has decided to adopt
technology options for accurate mapping of its mines.
“The mapping will mainly be undertaken in Keonjhar district which
large deposits of iron ore and manganese. Remote Sensing Technology is
being considered as the best option for articulate mapping”, state
industry minister Raghunath Mohanty on Wednesday informed in the
Orissa Legislative Assembly.
Replying to a query in the state Assembly, Mr Mohanty said that it was
agreed in a recently held high level meeting to engage the Orissa
Remote Sensing Application Centre (ORSAC) and National Remote Sensing
Agency (NRSA) to prepare the maps.
“It was agreed in the meeting to entrust ORSAC and NRSA with the
responsibility of mapping of mines. They will draw the maps in
association with the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur and
other concerned Central government agencies,” the minister said.
An Inter-Organisational Group (IOG) has been constituted to submit a
report to the government on this subject.
“After the report of the IGO is made available to us, the government
will think over the next step,” he added.
Steel and mines additional secretary, Orissa Mining Corporation deputy
general manager (information technology), deputy director mines and
representatives of ORSAC have been taken as members of the IOG.
During the ongoing Assembly session, the Naveen Patnaik government has
been put to embarrassing situation by the Opposition over alleged
exploitation of iron ore, manganese and other minerals by lease
holders beyond the boundary of their demarcated area.
The Opposition even charged that the state government had received
crore of rupees kickback to favour the mines owners.
Sid Harth
SCANDAL
Deep pockets of Jharkhand
VENKITESH RAMAKRISHNAN
in Ranchi and New Delhi
Tax sleuths close in on former Chief Minister Madhu Koda for amassing
ill-gotten wealth and money-laundering.
PTI
Madhu Koda being discharged from a hospital in Ranchi on November 8.
He complained of high blood pressure and stomach ache in the course of
interrogation by tax officials for alleged hawala transactions.
“JHARKHAND may be lagging behind in many areas of governance and
development, but we are ahead of most other States in one thing,
political and bureaucratic corruption,” Stephen Marandi, former Deputy
Chief Minister of Jharkhand, used to make this statement often,
referring to many of his political colleagues and officers who run the
government.
Marandi’s comment used to draw appreciation from those who viewed the
State’s politics objectively. It is also widely accepted within the
State’s political circles that he does have the moral and political
authority to make such a comment. He was perhaps the only non-
controversial member of two controversial Ministries – one led by
independent Madhu Koda between September 18, 2006, and August 27,
2008, and the other headed by Jharkhand Mukthi Morcha (JMM) chief
Shibu Soren between August 27, 2008, and January 18, 2009. He was
Deputy Chief Minister in both. Marandi used to refer to Koda’s name in
the context of his statement on corruption.
It took a year and a half after Koda’s departure from office and an
investigation by the income tax (I.T.) authorities and the Enforcement
Directorate (E.D.) to understand the independent legislator-turned-
Chief Minister had indeed operated on a scale unmatched by any other
leader in the State.
According to estimates doing the rounds, Koda and his associates
allegedly amassed approximately Rs.4,000 crore in his 23-month tenure
as Chief Minister and laundered it using various means during this
term and the period following his ouster from office. It was during an
E.D. investigation into an aide of former Governor Syed Sibte Razi
that the agencies stumbled on Koda’s money matters.
According to investigating officials in the E.D. and the I.T.
Department, Koda had amassed a large portion of the money by
facilitating mining contracts for iron ore and coal. On the face of
it, this was done by signing 26 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs)
and by giving recommendations, on the basis of ministerial discretion,
to an equal number of applications seeking mining leases for iron ore
and coal. Clearances from several Ministries are normally required for
granting mining leases, but the Chief Minister and, in some cases, the
Minister for Mines, had discriminatory powers to recommend that an
institution or an individual could be granted a mining lease.
No Chief Minister of erstwhile Bihar (of which Jharkhand was a part
until November 2000) or Jharkhand itself is known to have used these
discriminatory powers as rampantly as Koda did. In the process, he
allegedly charged a certain fee for signing the MoUs and making the
recommendations.
Sources among the investigating officials told Frontline that Koda had
“charged” Rs.2 crore to Rs.20 crore for signing an MoU, depending on
the quantum of coal or iron ore that the respective mine would have
produced. The recommendations were sold at a price of Rs.30 crore to
Rs.80 crore, again depending on the produce of a particular mine. The
officials point out that Koda did not handle cash directly, but got
the money deposited directly or through some of his accomplices in a
Mumbai-based finance company or with hawala operators.
Koda’s associates in this included small-time businessmen such as
Vinod Kumar Sinha and his brothers Vikas Sinha and Sunil Sinha, based
in Chaibasa (Koda’s constituency), and businessmen brothers Sanjay
Choudhary and Dhananjay Choudhary based in Jamshedpur. The I.T. and
E.D. have also listed his former Cabinet colleagues Bandhu Tirkey,
Bhanu Pratap Shahi, and Kamlesh Singh as accomplices in the scam.
Tirkey was an independent MLA like Koda, while Shahi belonged to the
Forward Bloc and Kamlesh Singh to the Nationalist Congress Party
(NCP).
While Koda was directly involved in “striking the deals”, the money
was apparently handled by his “non-political” associates and laundered
by financial companies. The E.D. has booked Koda under the four-year-
old Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2005, which prescribes
punishment of up to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for the
guilty. The PMLA also provides for the freezing, seizure and
confiscation of the proceeds of crime. It imposes obligations on
banking companies, financial institutions and intermediaries to verify
the identity of clients, maintain records and furnish information to
the authorities. Koda is the first MP and former Chief Minister to
have been booked under the PMLA and his is the biggest case lodged by
the E.D. under the Act so far.
PTI
According to investigating officials, Koda amassed large sums by
facilitating mining contracts for iron ore and coal. Here, coal
waiting to be transported in the Khalari area of Jharkhand.
E.D. investigation has apparently revealed Koda’s money-laundering
exercises leading to massive deals and investments on a global scale.
He had reportedly made secret visits to Switzerland and other foreign
countries as part of this. The E.D. suspects that the former Chief
Minister has one or several accounts in Swiss banks and other banks in
tax havens. The E.D. has also reportedly collected “unshakable
evidence” about investments by Koda in mines in Thailand and Liberia.
Some of Koda’s accomplices, according to E.D. and I.T. investigations,
amassed movable and immovable property worth Rs.200 crore. These
include the companies Shiv Ram Sponge Iron Ltd and Rollin Mill, vast
quantum of land in Jharkhand and outside as well as several flats.
The Choudharys set up two companies – Blue Techno Projects Ltd and CP
Manufacturing – in Dubai and invested in more than a dozen ones in
Thailand, Indonesia, South Africa and Dubai. Kamlesh Singh, the
investigation points out, bought property worth Rs.50 crore in Mumbai,
Delhi, Bangalore and Ranchi. Shahi and Tirkey, too, have property
worth crores of rupees in and outside Jharkhand.
Larger dimensions
Koda, his associates among politicians and businessmen have all denied
the charges made by the E.D. and I.T. investigators. There is a view
among sections of the State’s political class and the administration
that, if properly probed, the Koda scam would reveal far more damaging
details than the ones that have come to light at present. It says the
Koda affair is not only about taking bribes for mining deals and money-
laundering but also about selling India’s iron ore cheaply to foreign
countries. Some contend that it could even have another dimension:
that of iron-ore smuggling. The argument is based on the premise that
the quantum of money involved is too large to be a scam involving only
bribes and money-laundering.
According to a senior government official, Jharkhand’s iron ore is
reportedly rich in ferrous content and is in great demand across the
globe, particularly in China where a construction boom has been for
sometime now. “It needs to be probed where the iron ore from these
mines have gone and which are the companies that sent it abroad,” the
official pointed out. It remains to be seen whether this angle would
be taken up by the investigating agencies or its masters.
Culprits all
PTI
At the Income Tax office in Ranchi on November 6, an official carries
bundles of documents seized from Koda's residence.
At the political level, the Koda affair is something for which almost
all political forces of the State, except the Left parties, will have
to take responsibility. Koda was the Minister for Mines during the
Arjun Munda-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government that ruled
from March 12, 2005, to September 18, 2006. He, along with three other
independent MLAs, was instrumental in bringing down that government.
Immediately after that he assumed the Chief Minister’s post with the
support of the Congress, the JMM and Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata
Dal (RJD).
During his tenure Koda had even publicly stated that he was into
“money-making”. “If I do not make money do you think that these big
parties and leaders will allow me to continue in office?” he had told
mediapersons. Obviously, none of the bigger parties in the State can
absolve themselves of the offence of letting Koda and associates loose
on the administration.
However, at the political level, the Koda scam seems to be helping the
Congress. This is partly because of the public perception that there
has been a greater impetus to probe corruption cases under the current
Governor K. Sankaranarayanan. There is a definitive impression that
Sankaranarayanan has been sent by the United Progressive Alliance
government at the Centre to correct the State’s mismanagement over the
past few years. Some of the welfare measures taken by the Governor’s
regime in the State, such as the strengthening of the public
distribution system (PDS) and the promotion of self-help groups,
particularly those among destitute women, have helped strengthen this
impression.
A number of political observers, however, believe that the pro-
Congress dimensions of the Koda scam could come tumbling out if the
former Chief Minister, who rose from the position of a construction
labourer to become one of the richest politicians in the State makes
bold to expose the “big parties and leaders” who allowed him to
continue in office, apparently for a price.
The other, and perhaps more important, question is whether the
investigating agencies will be ready to probe the doubts raised by a
section of the administration about iron-ore smuggling. Whether these
queries evoke affirmative or negative answers, there is little doubt
that the Koda story will have many more new chapters added to it in
the coming days.
chhotemianinshallah
Pranab Bardhan: Our corruption, their corruption
Unlike India, corruption in authoritarian East Asian regimes is less
damaging to the economy
Pranab Bardhan / November 26, 2009, 0:36 IST
Recently, the trial in a case of corruption against a billionaire
Party official along with many of his associates and accomplices
(public servants, judges, policemen and gangsters) in Chongqing, one
of China’s fastest-growing cities, brought to limelight the politician-
business-criminal nexus, that is not unfamiliar to India. Corruption
is pervasive in both countries, and in that context I have often been
asked how, in spite of all the corruption, the Chinese economic
performance has been so much better than India’s. (Similar questions
used to be asked of the phenomenal economic growth in South Korea and
Taiwan since the 1960s, in the middle of their rampant corruption).
Of course, in this matter, East Asia is not unique in history. In
European history, the entrepreneurial class grew out of the sales of
monopoly rights, tax farming and other forms of privileged access to
public resources. In the US “gilded age” of late 19th century, the
widespread corruption of state legislatures and city governments by
business interests and those seeking franchises for public utilities
has gone along with economic growth.
But it is interesting to speculate on the several ways in which our
corruption is qualitatively different from that in East Asia and on
their differential economic effects.
First, in China the lines of authority are more well-defined and
streamlined, whereas there is multiple veto power of different
authorities on a given decision in India. An apocryphal story has it
that one high official in New Delhi once told a friend: “If you want
me to move a file faster, I am not sure I can help you; but if you
want me to stop a file, I can do it immediately.” So, even after
paying bribes, one is never sure in India if the job will get done.
This ability to “stop a file” at multiple points, part of a checks-and-
balances system (originally installed by the colonial government
suspicious of native officers, continued after Independence), acts as
a damper on collusive corruption, but has ended up making our
corruption rather dysfunctional.
An offshoot of this system is institutionalised suspicion, which
undermines incentives for bold decisions in the Indian bureaucracy. If
a top bureaucrat does good work, the legitimate rewards are few, but
if the decision leads to a project that fails, s/he will be hounded by
the Central Vigilance Commission or the Central Bureau of
Investigation (as it is often difficult for the latter to distinguish
between decisions which simply did not work out and decisions which
may have corrupt motivations). Thus the Indian civil service is highly
risk averse and does not easily take innovative decisions.
Institutional inertia rules, particularly because these officers, in
any case, spend only two or three years on a given posting — why rock
the boat?
Second, in China, official rewards and career promotions are more
directly linked to local economic performance than in India, so the
officials involved do not usually lose sight of the overall
performance record, even as they line their own pockets. On my visits
to Beijing, I have often privately asked my Chinese friends to give me
their rough estimates of misappropriation of project value from the
frenzied, large-scale public infrastructure programmes. None of these
estimates exceeded 10 per cent.
I am reminded of another apocryphal story I once heard in Belgium that
goes like this: In an international conference in Belgium, at the
reception in the evening, an African minister took his host, a Belgian
minister, aside and asked him how on his official salary he could
afford to build the large mansion where the reception was being held.
The Belgian minister took his African guest to the window and said,
“See that road there? — 10 per cent”. Then, as usually happens in such
stories, in a year or two, there was a similar conference in Africa
where at the reception given by that African minister at his home, the
Belgian minister asked how his host could build the huge palace on his
income. The African minister took his Belgian guest to the window and
said, “See that road?” The Belgian minister looked this way and that
way, and said, “I don’t see any road here”. The African minister
smiled and said, “100 per cent”. I presume in China politicians do not
steal 100 per cent, as their career promotion depends on the over-all
economic performance of the area they are in charge of.
Third, in the past authoritarian regimes of South Korea and Taiwan,
the political machine and its corruption were more centralised, which
is less distortionary in its effects than decentralised corruption.
Like the efficiency of “lumpsum taxation” in public finance theory,
lumpsum bribery distorts fewer decisions at the margin. Indonesia
under Suharto was by most international measures more corrupt than
India, and yet overall economic performance was much better. It is
possible that Indonesian corruption at that time was more centralised
(controlled largely by the first family and the top military
leadership) and thus somewhat more predictable, whereas in India
corruption was (and is) a more fragmented, often anarchic, system of
bribery, as is now the case in post-Suharto Indonesia.
Finally, as elections become more expensive, politicians in India have
to be on the lookout for serious money to an extent not necessary in
China and other authoritarian regimes. Donations to election funds
from the corporate oligarchy (and from real estate business), often
under the table, have become more important. The corrupt impact of
this on policy (including in matters of allocation of land, monopoly
rights on natural resources or telecommunication spectrum or those of
regularisation of all kinds of unauthorised constructions and
environment-polluting enterprises) is much too evident. Of course, in
this respect our corrupt election financing has brought about results
that are similar to what Chinese authoritarian crony capitalism has
achieved through unaccountable political processes. At least in India,
one hopes, there are institutional processes and checks (through
elections, courts, right to information, etc.) in place which are
somewhat more effective.
The author teaches at the University of California, Berkeley College
of Letters and Science
chhotemianinshallah
Ranchi, November 27, 2009
Vigilance Bureau issues fresh summons to Koda
PTI
Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda at an election rally in
Ranchi. File Photo: PTI
The Vigilance Bureau issued fresh summons to former Jharkhand Chief
Minister Madhu Koda in a disproportionate assets case to appear before
it on December 4 after he failed to do so on Friday.
“He was to appear today. But he sent a letter stating that he was busy
in electioneering. The department immediately issued (fresh) summons
to appear before it on December 4,” Inspector General of Police
(Vigilance) M.V Rao told PTI here.
The summons was issued in connection with a disproportionate assets
(DA) case pending before the special Vigilance Court here.
Bandhu Tirkey, Kamlesh Singh and Bhanu Pratap Sahi are the other
former ministers in the then Koda government who are also facing DA
charges, Mr. Rao said.
Mr. Koda had also failed to appear before the Enforcement Directorate
on November 13, 15 and 19 citing the same reason.
The ED had summoned him in connection with the Rs. 4,000 crore money
laundering case that it booked against him and eight others.
Subsequent raids by the Income Tax department on 70 premises,
including Koda’s, on October 31 had revealed a Rs. 2,000 crore alleged
Hawala transactions and illegal investments.
The IT and ED authorities are studying documents relating to mines as
Mr. Koda held that portfolio since 2004 and retained it after taking
over the reins from Arjun Munda.
Sid Harth
Koda dodges vigilance again
OUR CORRESPONDENT
Ranchi, Nov. 27: Former chief minister Madhu Koda did not keep his
date with the state vigilance today, explaining in a letter that he
was busy campaigning.
The vigilance bureau, which has now asked him to appear at its Audrey
House headquarters on December 4, was understandably not pleased with
the way the former chief minister has been dodging investigators in
connection with the July 2 FIR against him and three former cabinet
colleagues for owning assets disproportionate to his known sources of
income.
This afternoon, Koda sent over an emissary at Audrey House to deliver
a letter to the IG vigilance, M.V. Rao, saying he was busy campaigning
in Chaibasa for party nominees that included his wife, Geeta.
The vigilance bureau, sources said, had taken a serious view of Koda’s
absence today. They pointed out the former chief minister had earlier
this month dodged both the income tax and enforcement directorate
officials on the same pretext.
“Investigations cannot be impeded merely because an accused is busy,”
a senior vigilance officer said.
While the income tax department is engaged in unearthing Koda’s hidden
incomes and assets, the enforcement directorate has lodged an FIR
against him and others under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
Rao confirmed to The Telegraph that fresh summons had been issued to
interrogate the former chief minister.
To speed up investigations, the sources added, the vigilance bureau
would be seeking the help of the income tax department to try and
establish a link between various assets and documents unearthed during
the joint IT and ED raids on Koda’s associates _ Vinod Sinha, Sanjay
Choudhary and Mumbai-based hawala dealers_ to him.
bademiyansubhanallah
India politician Madhu Koda held in corruption case
Mr Koda is an independent politician
A former chief minister of the eastern Indian state of Jharkhand has
been arrested in connection with a corruption investigation.
Madhu Koda, an independent politician was arrested nearly two months
after a case was registered against him.
Mr Koda is under investigation for for allegedly possessing assets
disproportionate with his income and for alleged money laundering.
Mr Koda has denied the charges and says they are "politically
motivated."
He had failed to appear before the authorities for questioning
regarding a case of laundering money saying that he would be available
only after elections in Jharkhand on 18 December.
Mr Koda, 38, was arrested in Chaibasa district on the instruction of
India's Enforcement Directorate which investigates economic crimes,
police said.
He is alleged to have laundered millions of dollars during his stints
as chief minister of Jharkhand between 2006 and 2008.
For the past month, the Enforcement Directorate and income tax
authorities have raided dozens of offices and homes all over the
country to investigate the allegations against Mr Koda.
The Jharkhand vigilance department has also filed a case against Mr
Koda and three former ministers, Bandhu Tirkey, Bhanu Pratap Shahi and
Kamlesh Singh, for allegedly accepting bribes, reports say.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8385781.stm
Sid Harth
Josy Joseph / DNA
Monday, November 30, 2009 2:38 IST
New Delhi: A high-ranking army officer, a lieutenant general
responsible for promotions and postings, has been found guilty on
several counts of misdeed in favouring a private company to build a
sprawling educational establishment at a sensitive location.
This is perhaps the first time that a principal staff officer (PSO),
one of the seven senior Lt Generals who look after crucial functions
and report directly to the army chief, has been found guilty of such
misdeeds, including conspiracy.
Military secretary Lt Gen Avdhesh Prakash entertained the businessmen,
who wanted to set up the educational establishment, at his official
residence; he forced the military to modify a proposed memorandum of
understanding with the business house, and even met several people on
behalf of the proposed institution, the court of inquiry in Kolkata
has found. His culpability in the fraud "has been established beyond
doubt," a military source told DNA.
The inquiry wound up this weekend, and is expected to submit its
report in a couple of days. The findings raise uncomfortable questions
for the government: Will it allow the army to let the rules take their
course -- including possible convening a court-martial to try Lt Gen
Prakash? Or will it take recourse to other means, such as the summary
dismissal of the Lt General to show its resolve to fight corruption
and such misdeeds? Or, will it give him an 'honourable' exit from the
army, allowing him to go on leave till retirement?
According to military sources, the court of inquiry into the land scam
at the 33 Corps headquarters in Sukna, West Bengal, was told by
several military officers and private individuals that Lt Gen Prakash
played a crucial role in the entire conspiracy.
The idea was to replace the original decision of the 33 Corps to not
permit any commercial enterprises on a piece of land outside the corps
headquarters near Siliguri, West Bengal.
To begin with, a forged document was used to replace the original
papers (in which the decision not to let private enterprises in the
land was recorded). Then a series of other decisions were imposed on
the 33 Corps to help the Kolkata-based business group to start a Rs300
crore enterprise on the 70-acre land.
Lt General PK Rath, who was the 33 Corps chief when the army signed
the MoU with the private group, told the court of inquiry that most of
his actions were at the behest of Lt Gen Prakash.
Sharat Bajoria, the business house owner, told the inquiry that he was
introduced to Lt Gen Prakash at the military secretary's government-
allotted residence in New Delhi. In turn, Lt Gen Prakash told the
inquiry that he had known Dalip Sabarwal, a contractor who introduced
Bajoria to him, for several years.
Incidentally, Sabarwal is also the contractor for building a war
memorial in Kumaon regimental centre in Uttaranchal. Lt Gen Prakash is
the colonel commandant of the regiment.
Incidentally, a host of policy decisions on promotions during
Prakash's tenure has led to a revolt in the ranks.
chhotemianinshallah
Agencies
Posted: Monday , Nov 30, 2009 at 1855 hrs
New Delhi:
Prime accused in the multi-crore fake stamp paper case Abdul Karim
Telgi and two of his accomplices were sentenced to 10 years rigorous
imprisonment by the special CBI court in Bhopal.
The judge found Telgi, Shabbir Ahmed Sheikh and Sohail Khan guilty
under section of 120-B of Indian Penal Code pertaining to criminal
conspiracy and IPC section 255 dealing with counterfeiting of
government stamp papers and imposed fine of Rs five lakh on each of
them in each count, a CBI spokesperson said here today.
“The court also found the three accused persons guilty under section
69 of Indian Stamp Act read with 120B and imposed sentences of 6
months rigorous imprisonment with fine of Rs 500. The sentences are to
run concurrently,” he said.
The CBI had registered two fake stamp paper cases in 2004 on the
orders of Supreme Court.
“In one case, Jagjeevan Yadav, proprietor of Malwa Enterprises, Indore
allegedly supplied 200 forged stamps at the rate of Rs 50 worth Rs
10,000 to State Bank of India, Dhar on May 1 and June 7 in the year
2000. The payments for the same were made through demand draft to the
company. However, he was not authorized for sale of stamp paper,” he
said.
Yadav had also supplied forged and fake stamp and stamp papers to
various institutions in the district, causing wrongful loss to the
state government, the spokesperson said.
“In another case it was alleged that Giriraj Prasad Bhatnagar, Manager
Bank of India, Simrol Branch was contacted by two employees of Malwa
Enterprises during June 2000 and was informed that they were working
for Sohail Khan, Abdul Gafoor Mujahid, Karim and Ashfaq,” he said.
The above mentioned two employees of the said firm offered to supply
special adhesive stamps and non-judicial stamp papers to the bank in
its premises only, he said.
“Judicial Stamp Papers and Non-Judicial Stamp paper were supplied by
the company through its employees,” the CBI spokesperson said.
“Later, it was revealed that stamp papers supplied to the bank were
fake. The complainant was further informed that the company had the
license to supply in the name of Yadav,” the official said.
The CBI had filed two separate chargesheets accusing trio along with
Jagjeevan Yadav, Ashfaq Mulla and Mansoor Bacholikar under different
sections of IPC.
“Jagjeevan Yadav and Abdul Gafoor Mujahid expired during trial and
investigation respectively, hence proceedings against them were
abated. Ashfaq Mulla and Mansoor Bacholikar were made approvers in
this cases. The court had granted pardon to them,” he said.
Comments (1) |
traveller
By: citizen | 30-Nov-2009
What did they do with the illegal money they accumulated by selling
forged papers? Did anyone try to find this? These culprits/thiefs/
goons will be out within no time to do the same with the support of
the corrupt politicians.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/stamp-paper-scam-telgi-gets-10year-jail/548044/0
chhotemianinshallah
1 Dec 2009, 2234 hrs IST, Navtan Kumar, ET Bureau
RANCHI: The Congress admitted on Tuesday that Madhu Koda was made
Jharkhand chief minister under pressure from United Progressive
Alliance (UPA) allies. Mr Koda was arrested by the state vigilance
bureau on Monday in a disproportionate assets case.
Mr Koda is a key accused in the Rs 2,000-crore money laundering scam
and illegal mining deals.
AICC general secretary and ex-chief minister of Madhya Pradesh
Digvijay Singh said the party supported Mr Koda for the post under
pressure from allies but he failed to provide a clean government. Mr
Koda, an Independent MLA, was made chief minister after the Arjun
Munda government was toppled in 2006. His government was supported by
the Congress from outside.
Reacting to Mr Koda’s allegations that the Congress was behind his
arrest, Mr Singh said Mr Koda should present his point of view in a
transparent manner and should avoid from making sweeping statements.
"No Congress chief minister has faced any such allegations. The
Congress is against corruption and those who are involved in
corruption should be ready to face the result," he said.
About the alleged illegal mining deals struck during the Koda regime,
Mr Singh said investigating agencies should also probe all the deals
of the Arjun Munda regime.
On Union minister Subodh Kant Sahay’s declaration that Dr Ram Dayal
Munda will be chief ministerial candidate in case the party came to
power, Mr Singh clarified that Congress never makes such
announcements. "The chief minister’s name is decided by the MLAs in
consultation with the Congress president. A senior leader like Mr
Sahay should not have made such an announcement," he said.
Meanwhile, the stage is set for the second round of polling in 14
Assembly constituencies on Wednesday. The state government and the
Election Commission have made elaborate arrangements for ensuring
peaceful and smooth polling, especially in the wake of Maoists’ threat
to disrupt polling. As many as 30.96 lakh voters will exercise their
franchise to elect MLAs from 259 candidates (15 women) in 4,315
polling booths.
In a related development, a special vigilance court on Tuesday sent
former Jharkhand minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader
Kamlesh Singh to 14 days judicial custody in connection with a DA
case. He was arrested at Hussainabad in Palamau district on Monday.
The court, however, granted his plea to allow him to file nomination
papers from Hussainabad assembly seat as Tuesday was the last day for
filing the papers. Polling in Hussainabad takes place on December
18.
Sid Harth
Press Trust of India / New Delhi December 2, 2009, 17:43 IST
Alleging "massive corruption" in all infrastructure projects linked
to the Commonwealth Games 2010, BJP today said Delhi Government has
been spending huge sum of money "mindlessly" to speed up work on them
as the mega event approaches.
Alleging that the government was responsible for "inordinate delays"
in implementation of various key projects, senior party leader V K
Malhotra said huge cost escalation of work was only benefitting the
builders.
"Massive corruption is taking place in all the projects being
implemented by the Delhi Government. Now the Government is ready to
spend any amount of money to ensure national prestige," Malhotra told
reporters.
Asked whether he has any substantial proof to back his allegation, he
said the Comptroller and Auditor General in its report has already
found financial irregularities in implementation of various projects.
"Cost of the projects has increased three-four times. Who is
responsible for it? Is it not corruption?"
The government is now increasing cost of most of the projects which
will only benefit the builders and contractors," Malhotra, who is also
Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly, said. Malhotra, who is a
senior vice-president of Indian Olympics Association (IOA), said the
city will face huge embarrassment during the event because of the
"pathetic traffic and law and order situation".
Slamming the government for "not carrying out development works" in
unauthorised colonies, he said the "pathetic condition" of the slums
and these colonies will be "exposed" to the outside world. The BJP
leader also feared that builders and contractors may compromise on
quality of infrastructure to meet the deadline.
Not satisfied with the preparation for the event, Commonwealth Games
Federation (CGF) President Michael Fennel had in September sought
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention to put things in order.
Later, a CGF delegation that included Fennel too, expressed
satisfaction over progress of work.
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit maintains that her government will
complete all the work well in time although it was little "nervous"
about the preparations.
chhotemianinshallah
TNN 3 December 2009, 02:23am IST
BANGALORE: Oddly enough, the officials our Lokayukta cops raid live in
a time warp: where acres of real estate still cost sleepy lakhs, and
gold is just Rs 450 a gram. Sample this: the value of three acres of
land, with a Mangalore tile house at Banavasi village, bordering
Hassan, is worth just Rs 1.05 lakh.
Similarly, four acres and 20 guntas of land near Gulbarga, with a
compound constructed around the entire plot in blackstone, is Rs 2.8
lakh! What a steal!
These are some of the properties the Lokayukta came upon during its
raids on Wednesday on seven government officials — it added up assets
to the tune of Rs 6.86 crore, and even that sum is disproportionate to
their known sources of income.
The raided officials include Karnataka State Forest Industries
Corporation assistant manager B C Shantha Kumar, in Hassan, motor
vehicles inspector Jayananda B Narasannanavar in Chikkodi, additional
deputy commissioner of Chamarajnagar Nagappa, Gulbarga University
director of physical education Pratap Singh Tiwari, KIADB junior
engineer Shivalingaiah in Dharwad, Hopcoms first-division assistant C
Devaraju in Bangalore and Sagar panchayat raj executive engineer
Srikanth R.
bademiyansubhanallah
Express News Service
First Published : 03 Dec 2009 08:15:54 AM IST
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Veteran Congress leader K.Karunakaran on Wednesday
wrote an emotional letter to AICC president Sonia Gandhi seeking a
smooth re-induction of K.Muraleedharan into the Congress fold.
The letter was personally handed over to Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on
Wednesday by P.C.Chacko MP, who has been advocating Muraleedharan’s re-
entry into the party.
In his letter, Karunakaran requested Sonia Gandhi to favourably
consider the demand of Muraleedharan to rejoin the Congress before the
local-self government elections, which is due in 2010.
“The AICC president should favourably consider his request and take a
decision soon,’’ the veteran leader said in his letter.
Karunakaran said that he along with other party workers, including
former KPCC president K Muraleedharan, had quit the Congress following
certain circumstantial pressures. But the Congress has the rich
tradition of taking back those who are willing to come back admitting
their mistakes, the letter said.
``I have devoted my entire life for strengthening the Congress party.
As a senior leader of the party I hope my request will be favourably
considered at this juncture,’’ says Karunakaran concluding the letter.
Muraleedharan will reach New Delhi on December 6 to attend a
function. He is scheduled to have yet another round of talks with the
central leaders of the party during this visit.
Muraleedharan had earlier given a letter to Mohsina Kidwai, AICC
general secretary who is in charge of Kerala affairs, conveying his
desire to rejoin the party unconditionally.
As per the suggestions of senior leaders like A.K.Antony and Vayalar
Ravi, Muraleedharan also had discussions with Opposition Leader Oommen
Chandy and KPCC president Ramesh Chennithala here.
The next KPCC executive committee meeting is scheduled to discuss the
re-entry of Muraleedharan as the AICC is waiting for the KPCC decision
in this regard.
However, the state leadership is yet to finalise a date for the next
meeting of the KPCC executive.
Comments
A Man who is entering in to 90s life or even entered is prostrating
before Sonia Gandhi bartering self respect.That is the position in
Indian Society now. Family System in India has brought misery in to
politics.For an ouside observer like me Mr Karunakaran seems to be
horribly corrupted.AK Antony seems to be honest. Antony rose in the
party after Karunakaran left it. As Mr N. Krishna said all in the
congress are corrupt only degree varies.Take the opportunism of Mr
Shashi Thoroor the great Nehruvian Secularist .He spent most of his
time in USA and England. and has no touch with people of India.It is a
surprise that the most politically enlightened Kerala Citizens that
too from the City Of Thiruvananthapuram elected him.
By Karavadi Raghava Rao
12/3/2009 11:04:00 AM
Veteran Congress leader K.Karunakaran was a Hindu terrorist who killed
a policeman when he started his political career. Veteran Congress
leader K.Karunakaran escaped the noose of justice and become a CM of
Kerala. His rule has damaged the Hindu community for ever and with the
fake ISRO spy case created by CIA agents in the media and Kerala
police enabled the CIA created AK Anthony in the seat of CM in place
of Karunakaran. Karunakaran’s vagabond son K. Muraleedharan was
working in Dubai and was running Hawala from his Deira office in
Dubai. He has is share of illegal occupation and regularization of
forest land and these two things make him in league with all congress
politicians like Sonia, Rahul and Ramesh Chennithala. All the goodas,
foreign agents, Pope plants, prostitutes hawala operators deserve top
position in congress party.
By n.krishna
12/3/2009 10:51:00 AM
Congress party in kerala is in a strong position than it was 3 years
ago. If sonia admits Muraleedharan back into the congress then she is
digging the grave for congress party in Kerala. Muraleedharan as
everyone knows is mentally retarded his inclusion will only fuel
factionalism in the party, he is corrupt to the core only one example
he collected money and bought a building in Trivandrum while he formed
DICK as the party headquarters in his own name let him disclose what
is the status of the property now is that still on his name or did he
donate that to the congress party. Keep the corrupt Murali out of
congress.
By Sangeetha
12/3/2009 10:26:00 AM
He despearately wants to continue the misdees and corruption .Sonia
Gandhi should stand firm in the decision to exclude any member of the
family of Karunakaran in to the congress fold
By Srinivasan
12/3/2009 8:51:00 AM
chhotemianinshallah
Punjab Newsline Network
Thursday, 03 December 2009
CHANDIGARH: Punjab Vigilance Bureau, in a drive against corruption in
public life, arrested three Gazzetted Officers (GOs) and five Non-
Gazzetted Officers (NGOs) in eight different bribery cases in last
month and was able to secure the conviction of thirteen accused in
twelve different vigilance cases.
Disclosing this here on Thursday Rajinder Singh, SP-cum-Joint Director
(Admn.) Vigilance Bureau Punjab, said that Bureau has put up its best
efforts to eradicate corruption amongst public servants and others in
every sphere in the State.
In this direction, the Vigilance officers have ensured that suspect
did not escape judicial punishment in the various courts in the State.
He added that during the last month of November, the Vigilance had
nabbed eight corrupt public servants red handedly accepting bribes in
eight different cases which include three Gazzetted Officers namely
Vijay Kumar Janjua, IAS, Director-cum-Secretary Industries, Mr Manjit
Singh Tehsildar Kapurthala, Dr Parveen Mahindru PHC Bajakhana and 3
Revenue officials. The Bureau has also registered two criminal cases
and three cases of disproportionate assets cases against the suspect
corrupt officials.
Giving further details Joint Director added that during the last month
the special courts have sentenced thirteen accused including three GOs
and nine NGOs and a private person after finding them guilty for one
year to three years imprisonment with fines in twelve different
vigilance cases which included three GOs namely Surinder Singh Sidhu
PCS, DTO Moga, Subhash Chander Garg Block Panchayat Officer Distt
Mansa, Balwinder Singh SDE, Marketing Board Bathinda and two
Sarpanchs and two PSEB officials.
http://www.punjabnewsline.com/content/view/21506/38/
bademiyansubhanallah
Ch Prashanth Reddy & B Krishna Mohan / Hyderabad December 04, 2009,
0:34 IST
Satyam Computer Services Ltd (SCSL) founder, B Ramalinga Raju, his
brothers and their spouses have acquired 1,065 properties with a
registered value of Rs 350 crore.
These include 109 properties in coastal Andhra, 11 in Karnataka, 40 in
Nagpur, 29 in Chennai and 876 in Hyderabad and the surrounding
Rangareddy district, according to sources tracking developments in the
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe of the Satyam case.
On the whole, the sources said, the Raju brothers and their spouses
bought 6,012 acres of land, 37,475 square yards of housing plots and
87,439 square feet of built-up area.
Besides Raju and his family, the CBI is understood to have discovered
that former chief financial officer of Satyam, Srinivas Vadlamani,
acquired 20 properties, comprising 92.16 acres of land and 2,582 sq
yards of housing plots, with a registered value of Rs 9.29 crore. The
properties were acquired in his and in the name of his family members.
These acquisitions were made from the “wrongful gains” earned by
selling Satyam shares during the period the accounting fraud was
perpetuated in the company.
“They made hay while the sun was shining by offloading the shares
while the other investors were holding on to the shares with a false
hope” that the share value would rise, the sources quoted from a
report.
On the whole, Raju, his family members and the front companies floated
by them are stated to have received Rs 2,700 crore by selling shares
and also by pledging shares with non-banking financial corporations.
Sources said CBI had come out with an evidence that Raju and his
associates had created seven “fake” foreign customers against whom
“forged and fabricated invoices” were raised to the tune of Rs 430
crore .
These “fake customers” were eCare Inc, Mobitel Inc, Cellnet Inc,
Synony Inc, Autotech Services, North Sea Inc and Hargrieves Inc.
Though teams were formed for developing products for the seven
companies, Satyam never delivered any products to them as no such
company existed. Nevertheless, Satyam had raised 63 invoices against
these seven companies.
Fabricated emails were sent to Satyam associates to make them believe
that the companies were actually existing.
“Detailed analysis of the emails revealed that the Internet protocol
addresses from which the emails were sent at the relevant time and
date were all from within Hyderabad, which clearly shows that such
emails never emanated from the seven foreign customers,” the CBI is
learnt to have stated.
On the role of Satyam’s former head of internal audit, V S Prabhakar
Gupta, whom the CBI arrested recently, sources said the investigating
agency was of the view that he “has deliberately suppressed the
irregularities brought out by his team”
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/raju-family-bought-1065-properties/378540/
bademiyansubhanallah
Ch Prashanth Reddy & B Krishna Mohan / Hyderabad December 3, 2009,
0:29 IST
Satyam Computer Services founder B Ramalinga Raju had made trips to
the Indian School of Business (ISB) in Hyderabad, to Visakhapatnam and
even the US, to convince the independent directors on the his board
for acquisition of Maytas Infra and Maytas Properties, the two
companies promoted by his family members.
This was a final and desperate effort to conceal his prolonged
falsification of accounts.
According to sources, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has
charged Raju with doing this to “put pressure” on them to approve the
deal. Three of the six former IDs of Satyam — Vinod Dham, Krishna
Palepu and Mangalam Srinivasan — lived in the US, while three others T
R Prasad, V S Raju and M Rammohan Rao stayed at Visakhapatnam,
Bhimavaram (about 300 km from Vizag) and the ISB campus respectively.
In addition, the date of the board meeting was communicated to the
directors only on December 13, 2008, just three days before the
meeting, unlike the usual practice of communicating such details a
fortnight in advance.
“This is the only board meeting where no agenda points were circulated
in advance. The draft board resolution was uploaded on to the board
portal only at 7.06 pm on December 15, 2008, thereby not giving any
meaningful time to the board members to prepare for the meeting,” the
sources quoted from a report.
At its December 16 meeting last year, the Satyam board had endorsed
the company’s proposal to buy Maytas Infra and Maytas Properties Ltd
(MPL) for $1.6 billion (over Rs 7,400 crore, at latest exchange rate).
The deal was aborted, following protests from investors.
The CBI is understood to have said the mergers and acquisition (M&A)
division of Satyam was not allowed to conduct its own internal
valuation and strategic studies pertaining to the deal. MPL “got
valued secretly and hurriedly through M/s E&Y”.
“In fact, no due diligence was conducted for the purpose of this
acquisition. A one-year-old draft due diligence report of M/s Luthra
and Luthra conducted for the purpose of an IPO listing of MPL was
wrongly used by (Satyam’s former chief financial officer) Sri V
Srinivas for this acquisition purpose,” the CBI said.
Meanwhile, Mahindra Satyam today said it could not assess the
potential impact, if any, of the Rs 1,220-crore (about $264-million)
loans from banks that Raju and his aides had taken by allegedly
forging board resolutions.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/raju-pressured-satyam-board/378442/
bademiyansubhanallah
Press Trust of India / New Delhi November 25, 2009, 20:52 IST
Amid reports that the Satyam accounting fraud could be as high as Rs
14,000 crore, nearly double of what was confessed by its founder B
Ramalinga Raju, the government today remained tight-lipped and said
the real amount would be brought before the court of law.
"Let's hope everything that has to be placed before the court is done
for the purpose of proving criminal culpability; which ultimately has
to be proved in the court. Let me not say something that will weaken
our case or help the other side," Corporate Affairs Minister Salman
Khurshid said when asked whether the scam could be worth Rs 14,000
crore.
Industry sources, however, said the purported amount of Rs 14,000
crore is an overall amount expected to have been lost by investors in
the stock market and will have no bearing on the financial health of
the company.
The minister further said that it is unfair to comment on a matter
that is subjudice. "I think we should leave to the investigating
agencies. Whatever they discover, they will take action on it, so we
must trust them. One must neither speculate, nor close any
possibilities... The court must take a view and we must not take a
public view," Khurshid added.
The CBI had filed a second chargesheet yesterday in the multi-crore
Satyam scam against its founder chairman B Ramalinga Raju, and others,
including the recently arrested internal auditor V S Prabhakar Gupta.
bademiyansubhanallah
Ch Prashanth Reddy & B Krishna Mohan / Hyderabad December 2, 2009,
0:42 IST
By contrast, the fraud enabled Raju’s kin and aides to make hundreds
of crores, charges CBI.
Fifteen major Indian institutional investors — including Birla Sun
Life, ICICI Prudential, Franklin Templeton, HDFC Asset Management, UTI
Asset Management and Reliance Life Insurance — which invested in the
fraud-hit Satyam Computer Services Ltd (SCSL), are understood to have
together suffered ‘wrongful losses’ of slightly over Rs 1,600 crore.
This is part of an estimated loss of Rs 14,162.25 crore incurred by
various investors (including retail) in the company.
Satyam founder B Ramalinga Raju, his brothers B Rama Raju and B
Suryanarayana Raju, and their kin received Rs 749 crore by offloading
SCSL shares during 1999-2006, the period when the company’s accounts
were fradulently inflated, according to sources.
Sources added that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had
gathered “adequate evidence” to prove that Satyam’s then financial
executives had gained over Rs 50 crore by “offloading the shares
during the fraud period, when share prices were artificially kept
high.”
The officials who benefited allegedly include former chief financial
officer V Srinivas (gained Rs 32 crore), senior vice president -
finance, G Ramakrishna (Rs 11.27 crore), vice president - finance, D
Venkatapathy Raju (Rs 1.76 crore), head of internal audit Prabhakar
Gupta (Rs 4.48 crore) and assistant manager- finance, Ch Srisailam (Rs
89 lakh).
In 2007- 08 and 2008-09, the Satyam founder, his brothers and their
spouses received dividends to the tune of Rs 25 crore “when the
company was actually not making any profits,” the CBI said. They had
also pledged SCSL shares “after artificially inflating the share
prices” and availed of loans from various nonbanking financial
companies to the tune of Rs 1,951 crore.
With regard to diversion of funds, the CBI did not disclose any
significant amount. It just said the Satyam promoters had diverted Rs
72. 5 lakh from SCSL into front companies owned by them in the year
1999. In an earlier report, the CBI had estimated the loss suffered by
institutional investors at Rs 958.98 crore. The investigating agency
said a further probe had revealed that the loss suffered was higher.
The institutions and the loss suffered by them in brackets are: Birla
Sun Life (Rs 111. 88 crore), ICICI Prudential (Rs 22.68 crore),
Franklin Templeton (Rs 100.37 crore), HDFC Asset Management (Rs 190.45
crore), UTI Asset Management (Rs 85.97 crore), Canara Robeco (Rs 6.14
lakh), ICICI Prudential (Rs 698.67 crore), ICICI Lombard (Rs 1.53
crore), Reliance Life Insurance (Rs 5.94 crore), HDFC Standard Life
Insurance (Rs 218.07 crore), SBI Life Insurance (Rs 22.84 crore). SBI
Funds Management (Rs 26.5 crore), Metlife India Insurance (Rs 23.76
crore), Fidelity Fund Management (Rs 102.88 crore) and Max New York
Life Insurance (Rs 18.36 lakh).
The CBI had estimated the total loss suffered by investors in SCSL was
Rs 14,162.25 crore, based on the average share price fall after the
fraud confession of Raju on January 7, 2009.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/satyam/s-major-investors-lose-rs-1600-crore/378326/
bademiyansubhanallah
Press Trust of India / Mumbai November 25, 2009, 15:54 IST
Shares of Satyam Computer (now Mahindra Satyam) today plunged over 13
per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange after the CBI said that the loss
suffered by investors in the Satyam scam may stretch to a staggering
Rs 14,000 crore, nearly double of what it was estimated to be earlier.
After a weak opening on the bourses, Satyam counter to a low of Rs
88.15, down 13.28 per cent over the previous close on the BSE.
The CBI yesterday filed the second chargesheet in the multi-crore
Satyam scam against its founder chairman B Ramalinga Raju and others,
including recently arrested internal auditor VS Prabhakar Gupta.
Marketmen said investors dumped the stock amid concerns of further
downside after the CBI chargesheet as the amount of fraud estimated by
the CBI is way higher than the initial estimates of Rs 7,800 crore.
On the National Stock Exchange the counter witnessed a similar
downtrend and plunged 13.29 per cent to a low of Rs 88.10 during the
afternoon trade.
Over 10.20 crore shares changed hands on both the bourses. As per the
chargesheet the accused have created fake customers and generated fake
invoices to inflate revenue to the tune of Rs 430 crore.
In January Raju admitted of cooking up the financial books of Satyam
to the extent of Rs 7,800 crore following which the scrip plunged as
much 78 per cent on a single day.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/satyam-tanks-13-as-cbi-doubles-scam-loss/79174/on
bademiyansubhanallah
Press Trust of India / Hyderabad November 24, 2009, 18:20 IST
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) today filed second
chargesheet in the multi-crore rupee Satyam scam against the founder
chairman of the company B Ramalinga Raju and others, including
recently arrested internal auditor of the company V S Prabhakar Gupta.
The chargesheet was filed in the designated court here accusing Raju
and Gupta under various sections of the Indian Penal Code for
allegedly indulging in siphoning off money to tax-haven countries,
including Mauritius.
As per the chargesheet, the accused forged board resolutions and
unauthorisedly obtained loans to the tune of Rs 1,220 crore for Satyam
Computer.
"They also prepared fake invoices worth Rs 430 crore," the chargesheet
said.
The chargesheet comes within days of the CBI team going to other
countries to probe the alleged diversion of funds by Raju and re-
routing back to India, official sources said.
The funds were routed back to India via European nations as
"investments" in nearly 300 alleged fictitious companies floated in
the name of his relatives, they said.
The CBI, which is probing the Rs 10,000-crore accounting fraud at
Satyam Computer Services, has found during investigations that Raju
had diverted big amounts to Mauritius from where the money was brought
back to India via several European countries, they added.
Sources said the amount of Rs 7,800 crore mentioned by Raju in his
"confessional statement" earlier this year was far less then what is
emerging out of the investigations.
The second chargesheet highlights some more financial transactions
made by Raju and some of his associates, sources said. It contains
1,549 additional documents and submissions from 301 witnesses.
In all, it is a 55,000-page document with a 200-page supplementary
chargesheet.
The CBI had filed the first chargesheet on April 7 this year.
The agency, after filing the second chargesheet, is expected to travel
to the US and probe the transactions made in the current accounts
maintained in Bank of Baroda's New York branch and a non-existent
balance of Rs 1,733 crore that has been found till date.
The CBI, which has set up a multi-disciplinary investigation team,
including officials from the Income Tax Department, the Enforcement
Directorate and the RBI, has claimed that the money involved in the
scam is nearly Rs 10,000 crore, more than what was stated by Raju in
his confessional note in January this year.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/cbi-files-second-chargesheet-in-satyam-scam/79084/on
bademiyansubhanallah
IANS
Published on Fri, Dec 04, 2009 at 21:36 in Politics section
MINE BOMB: The 100 mines in Goa export nearly 30 million tonnes of
iron ore annually.
Panaji: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday alleged that state
support to illegal mining and corruption in Goa's mining industry had
reached "unacceptable levels" and vowed to expose "several Madhu
Kodas" in the state, during the forthcoming Assembly session.
Addressing a press conference here, Leader of Opposition in the
Assembly Manohar Parrikar said that the state government's moves to
carve out new mining leases measuring 600,000 sq mt in South Goa in
face of public opposition, smacked of corruption and vested interests.
"Everyone from the collector to the talathi (mofussil revenue officer)
is involved in manipulating documentation in order to create these new
mining leases," he alleged.
"During the Assembly session, the BJP will expose the several Madhu
Kodas in Goa who are ravaging and squeezing the state dry," Parrikar
said, referring to former Jharkand chief minister Madhu Koda who is at
the centre of a Rs 4,000 crore scam involving kick backs from
corporate mining houses to open up mining leases in Jharkhand.
Parrikar had earlier alleged that Koda had mining interests in Goa and
was hand in glove with several of Goa's top ranking politicians as far
as illegal mining was concerned.
Mining for low grade iron ore and manganese is one of the principal
industries in the state, fetching nearly Rs 6,000 crore revenue from
exporting the ore to countries like China and Japan. The 100 mines in
Goa export nearly 30 million tonnes of iron ore annually.
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/will-expose-several-madhu-kodas-in-goa-bjp/106489-37.html
chhotemianinshallah
Faizan Ahmad, TNN 6 December 2009, 02:41am IST
PATNA: A staggering 300 Bihar government employees earning modest
government salaries are crorepatis. If this isn’t surprising enough,
here’s more:
All but two of the sleazy 300 continue to hold on to their secure as
also, no doubt, lucrative - government jobs despite long stints in
jails.
According to official figures, 71 such corrupt babus were caught until
November this year by the state vigilance bureau. In 2006, when chief
minister Nitish Kumar cracked the whip on graft, 70-odd ‘trap’ cases
led to the arrest of 76 employees. This figure shot up to 131 in 2007;
while 97 others were caught with their hands in the till in 2008. Of
these 365 arrested babus, Vigilance Bureau found 300 of them had
assets and other valuables running into crores.
In the last four years, chargesheets were submitted against 596
gazetted and 632 non-gazetted public servants apart from 302 others,
including those arrested before 2006. With just one vigilance court in
Bihar for ‘trap’ cases, only a handful of them have been convicted so
far. Worse, the departments concerned have been indifferent about
sacking the convicts.
The only two corrupt public servants fired were clerks — one in
commercial taxes department and the other in the agriculture
department.
“The vigilance bureau has no role in the dismissal of government
servants arrested on corruption charge,” said ADG (vigilance) Anil
Sinha. “Our job is to arrest them, file FIRs, investigate the case,
submit chargesheets and put them on trial,’’ he said, adding dismissal
has to be ordered by the departments concerned.
Sinha admits trials in such cases haven’t been fast because there is
just one court for ‘trap’ cases. “But the pace of trials has
increased, with court proceedings taking place daily,’’ he added.
Another senior cop said speedy trial and conviction of such employees
would go a long way in discouraging others. The vigilance department,
too, feels that dismissals would create a sense of fear among other
greedy babus. Nitish Kumar has emphasised the need for special courts
to deal exclusively with trap and disproportionate assets cases. ``If
I had my way, I’ll have illegal properties amassed by them confiscated
and open schools in their palatial buildings,’’ Kumar said.
The state government has already got a Bihar Special Courts Bill,
2009, passed by the state legislature which provides for confiscation
of assets of corrupt government servants. But the Bill’s awaiting
Centre’s approval.
“It is pending with the Centre since March this year despite reminders
from the CM who has even met Union law minister Veerappa Moily in this
regard,’’ a senior state official said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/300-crorepati-babus-in-Bihar/articleshow/5306421.cms
chhotemianinshallah
Breaking News:
Poor forced to pay bribe to get kids into school: Survey
Kounteya Sinha , TNN 15 July 2008, 10:15am IST
NEW DELHI: Even India's poorest are being forced to pay bribes to
ensure their children go to school. Paying to get educated (TOI
Photo)
A Transparency International India-CMS survey that looked at
corruption in India's school education sector, specially focusing on
below poverty line (BPL) households settled in rural India has thrown
up shocking conclusions.
Around seven lakh BPL households in India paid bribe in the last one
year to avail services related to school education of their children -
the total amount paid as bribe being estimated to be around Rs 12
crore. Another nine lakh BPL households used contacts to get their
child admitted or promoted in school. However, another five lakh BPL
households weren't that lucky - their children couldn't avail such
services because they were either too poor to pay bribe or had
absolutely no contact or influence to use as an advantage.
The survey - that covered 22,728 randomly selected BPL households
across 31 states and union territories - said a majority of those who
paid bribe did so for getting their children admitted in the school or
for getting promotion of their children from one class to another.
Issuing school-leaving certificate was another lucrative business for
corrupt schools authorities. However, the amount bribed was highest
when it came for allotment of hostel. In comparison, a higher
proportion of urban BPL households (40%) paid bribe for new admission
and issuance of certificate as against rural areas (33%).
On the other hand, a higher proportion of rural BPL households (32%)
paid bribe for promotion of their children from one class to another
as against urban households (28%). The same is the case in applying
for scholarship where 12% rural BPL families paid bribe compared to 3%
urban BPL households. Of those who paid bribe, 86% paid it directly to
officials of the school while 12% paid it through middlemen.
According to the report, on an average, a BPL household had to pay Rs
171 as bribe in the last one year related to school education of their
children. While looking at states with moderate or high corruption in
the school education sector, the level of corruption in Bihar, Uttar
Pradesh, Meghalaya and Goa was found to be “alarming”.
Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur, Assam and Madhya Pradesh reported “very
high corruption” standards while Chandigarh, Delhi, Kerala, Tamil
Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Nagaland were put in the “high
corruption” category. States like Orissa, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura
and West Bengal, despite figuring way below in the country's
Educational Development Index, reported “moderate” corruption, “thanks
to active citizenry or social pressure”.
More than one-fourth (28%) of BPL households across the country felt
that there was corruption in school education, while 41% felt that
there was no corruption in school education in the last one year.
In the survey, 22% of BPL households acknowledged that the school
education service had taken some initiatives to check corruption while
more than 40% BPL households felt that no measures were taken to check
corruption in the last one year. More than one-third (37%) of the BPL
households felt that the level of corruption in school education had
come down while 18% felt corruption level had increased in the last
one year.
The school education service report is part of a larger national TII-
CMS India Corruption Study 2007 study.
...and I am Sid Harth
chhotemianinshallah
PTI 26 August 2009, 12:19pm IST
NEW DELHI: Asking CBI and state anti- corruption officials to
aggressively pursue "high level corruption", Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh on Wednesday said the perception that "big fish" escape
punishment must change and they should act swiftly and without fear.
( Watch Video )
Opening a conference of CBI and state anti-corruption bureaux here, he
said there was no single remedy for fighting corruption which has to
be combated at many levels, one of which was making existing systems
less discretionary.
"High-level corruption should be pursued aggressively. There is a
pervasive feeling that while petty cases get tackled quickly, the big
fish escape punishment. This has to change," Singh said.
The Prime Minister said while quick investigation was important and
necessary, it was not sufficient to bring the guilty to book.
"Trials should be conducted expeditiously and judgements delivered
quickly. To begin with the aim should be to conclude the trial in two
years so that punishment could be given to the offenders within a
period of three years or so," he said.
Singh said the government has recently decided to set up 71 new CBI
courts and expected them to function as model courts, hold day-to-day
proceedings and avoid unnecessary adjournments.
The Prime Minister said the world respects Indian democracy, its
plural and secular values, independent judiciary, free press, its
commitment to freedom and peace and its pursuit of equitable and
inclusive growth.
"But pervasive corruption in our country tarnishes our image. It also
discourages investors, who expect fair treatment and transparent
dealings. As the country grows and integrates with the world economy,
corruption continues to be an impediment to harnessing the best
technology and resources," he said.
Singh said the urgent need to combat corruption cannot be over
emphasised as it distorts the rule of law and weakens institutions.
"It hurts our economic growth in a variety of ways apart from
hindering our efforts to build a just, fair and equitable society," he
said.
The Prime Minister said there is a constant refrain in public
discourse that much of what the government provides never reaches the
intended beneficiaries -- whether it is subsidised food grains for the
poor, loans, fertilisers or seeds on concessional terms for small and
marginal farmers or the benefit of employment programmes for the
unemployed.
"This should be a matter of serious concern for all of us
collectively," he said.
Singh said there was no single remedy for fighting corruption and
battle against it has to be fought at many levels.
"The design of development programmes should provide for more
transparency and accountability. Systems and procedures which are
opaque, complicated, centralised and discretionary are a fertile
breeding ground for the evil of corruption. They should be made more
transparent, simple, decentralised and less discretionary," he said.
The two-day 17th biennial conference of CBI, state anti-corruption
bureaux and vigilance agencies is being attended by their heads from
all states and Union Territories.
...and I am Sid harth
chhotemianinshallah
PTI 9 December 2009, 08:37pm IST
NEW DELHI: A special team of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) will
soon visit several countries as part of its probe into the alleged
multi-crore hawala and illegal investment case against former
Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda and his associates.
ED's move comes following issuance of Letters Rogatory (LR) by a
Prevention of Money Laundering Act court in Ranchi today, official
sources said.
Following the issuance of the LR, a team of ED officials will leave
for Liberia, Sweden, Thailand, Indonesia, UAE and Switzerland among
other countries, they said.
Koda is currently in judicial custody following his arrest by
Jharkhand Vigilance Department under a disproportionate asset case on
November 30.
ED had earlier sent out 'source information' to all the mentioned
countries based on seized documents including documents suggesting
secret swiss bank accounts.
While the LR is a formal legal document issued through the court on
behalf of an investigating agency to provide for documents and sharing
of relevant details with other countries, 'source information' is data
obtained on an informal basis by probe agencies worldwide.
chhotemianinshallah
THE LOOT AND SCOOT POLITICS OF INDIA
Brigadier Arun Bajpai (Retd)
Recently all major news papers in the country had their headlines
screaming of raids being conducted in eight states and sixty premises
of Mr. Madhu Koda, the ex chief Minister of Jharkhand and his four
accomplices in connection with a 2000 corers scam. Before this the
60000 corers telecom wrong doing was hogging the lime light with
fingers being pointed at the Telecom Minister of India Mr. Raja. With
these happenings becoming a regular feature in India one may tend to
agree with the recent global survey that rates India as 84 Th most
corrupt country in the World.
Jharkhand, one of the most mineral rich states in India had a unique
distinction some time back of Mr. Madhu Khoda, an independent MLA,
becoming Chief Minister of the state and continuing for 23 months,
duly supported by the Congress and RJD. None of these parties claimed
the coveted post of CM themselves. It was also a strange coincidence
that the Congress led UPA 1 Government at the Centre at that time did
not hesitate in clearing 24 mining proposals recommended by Mr. Madhu
Khoda, in his 23 months tenure. Needless to say it is grant of these
mining rights which has resulted in the present ill gotten wealth of
the Honorable Chief Minister leading to his present troubles.
Fingers are being pointed at Mr. Raja for a major telecom scam which
has costed the country to the tune of 60000 corers. Of course Mr. Raja
is denying that there was any wrong doing. He is even bringing in the
name of no less a person than Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh
himself by saying that he had kept him informed. Mr. Raja belongs to
the DMK party which is the coalition partner of the Congress led
Government at the Centre.
In Maharashtra the election results to the state assembly were
declared on 22 Oct 09.The coalition of Congress and NCP won the
election. The new Government should have taken office within two to
three days. However till 04 November there was no Government to govern
Maharashtra an economically the most developed state of India. This
impasse has been caused because the coalition partners failed to reach
agreement on the sharing of portfolios of the key ministries carrying
major pelf and perks. The big question is how these politicians can be
so callous to the people who elected them in first place? In democracy
it is the will of the people which is supposed to be supreme but in
India our politicians make this basic principle stand on its head.
After being elected they hardly show any sense of accountability and
sensitivity to the very people who elected them.
Hardly one year has passed since Karnataka, after a fairly long period
of instability, got a stable Government led by Mr. BS Yeddyrappa. Now
there is revolt against the Chief Minister Mr. Yeddyrappa from within
the ranks of his party the BJP. The Reddy brothers, the chief
architect of this revolt are supposedly close to mining magnets of
Bellary mining complex of Karnataka. They and their backers do not
like the ways of Mr. Yeddyrappa. They want a change. This is happening
to a party which claims that they are disciplined and are a political
party with difference. The sufferers will again be the people of
Karnataka. If the change does takes place it will not be long before
there will be a counter change, again a un ending cycle of
instability, all for personal gains.
These are only the recent examples. The Bihar Fodder scam, Taj
Corridor scam, Bofor Gun purchase scam, Note for Vote scam and so many
other scams, they all had got highlighted in media earlier. However no
politician or bureaucrat has ever been punished. In other words in
India the political party in power can do no wrong. One can loot as
much as one can, well knowing that law will never be able to catch the
culprit if he is in politics and wields power. Unfortunately the
politics in India has reached this nadir at a time when India is the
youngest country in the World, needing a strong leadership to guide
this predominantly youth polity, lest they go hay why. Today we in
India have 74 million people who are below the age of 35.This youth
has its dreams, aspirations, desire and energy to better their lot as
also of their country. To keep them focused we need jobs in the
country which must be urgently created .For this we need large scale
investments in infrastructure, agriculture and educational fields.
Most of all we need a responsive government which must make people of
India feel that it cares. We need dedicated and committed politicians
who live up to the basic standards of honest leadership. We need
transparency in Governance and upholding of law and order in the
country. With the Cancer of Corruption at high places eating away the
vitals of this country, currently all this is not possible. Needless
to say the treatment of this disease has to start from the top and at
the earliest. The big fish must be caught and punished for people to
see and develop faith in the Indian Democracy and our system of
Governance. The lip service will not do. This will also ensure that
the pseudo Robin hoods like Naxals and other terror groups who have
taken to arms against Indian Constitution for the cause of the down
trodden and are gaining ground in the country, will lose their support
base. 39 million people of this country live below poverty line and
barely get two square meals a day. This loot and scoot politics, if
not brought to an end will result in these people falling in the arms
of Naxal movement and other terror organizations which will then
become unstoppable.
For last more than a decade the much talked about Lok Pal Bill,
bringing all politicians under its ambiance, is gathering dust. No
Government wants to make it a law. Time has come now that it must be
implemented. All members of Parliament including Prime Minister must
be included in it. If the charges can be brought against ex French
President or ex Israeli Prime Minister, as is currently happening in
their respective countries, what is so special about our democracy,
Prime Minister and other ministers that they can not be charged for
any monitory wrong doing? The Lok Pal in Centre and Lok Ayukt in
States as also the Chief Vigilance Commissioner of India and states
Vigilance Commissioners must be appointed in a transparent manner.
This process must be institutionalized and must be broad based. These
institutions must be totally autonomous like the Election Commission
of India, with various appointments having fixed tenures. CBI must
also be made autonomous and brought under the control of Lok Pal.
Currently the CVC of India has powers only to recommend the start of
criminal proceedings against a bureaucrat. It the Government which
decides whether to proceed or not .This must come to an end. Let CVC
initiate the proceedings. Special courts must be set up to deal with
all these corruption cases and the existing laws must be simplified.
Once the charge sheet has been filed, the property of the accused must
be ceased till the finish of the case. All cases must be decided in
six months to one year duration. Let us not procrastinate on this
issue of corruption. The country is fast sliding into an anarchy mode
and the rampant corruption prevalent in all sections of the society is
the main cause. A country of one billion strong people can not afford
a perception that their leaders are corrupt and politics is a bad word
in India.
Brigadier Arun Bajpai (Retd), Journalist Free Lance, C-128, Tyagi
Vihar, Sharda Nagar, PO-Dilkusha, Lucknow-226002,
Telephone-0522-2446497. 9918383007. E-Mail-bri...@yahoo.co.in,
brigaru...@indiatimes.com
Posted by Naxal Watch at 9:05 PM
http://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2009/12/loot-and-scoot-politics-of-india.html