Indian income tax authorities have initiated proceedings against those identified in HSBC’s list of 700 Indians who held bank accounts in the Geneva branch, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said.

The French Government had handed out the list to the Indian Government after the latter gave an undertaking that names would not be made public, Jaitley told the Lok Sabha.

On the strength of this list, India had sought banking information from Switzerland, which had rejected the request on the contention that it was based on “unauthorised data.”

“After we got the list, Indian tax authorities had embarked on an exercise to identify the names. Tax proceedings have been initiated on all those names which have been identified in the list by us,” Jaitley said.

₹6,000 crore estimated It is estimated that balances in the accounts of 700 Indians in HSBC Geneva aggregated to ₹6,000 crore as of 2006.

Jaitley also said the recently set up special investigation team on black money had evinced interest in getting the bank account details of the 700 Indians.

Meanwhile, Jaitley asserted that there was nothing to show that unaccounted money was entering through gold imports from the alpine country.

There has been no increase in the quantum of imports of gold from Switzerland during the first six months this year.

Jaitley said India was closely watching changes being discussed in Swiss domestic laws. Whatever best information that could be secured in India’s interest, would be done, he assured the Lower House.

“This (black money stashed abroad) is an issue that has been onboard for sometime and this present Government has taken it up with some element of intensity,” he said.

>srivats.kr@thehindu.co.in

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