Actors Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, industrialist Gautam Adani's brother Vinod Adani, DLF owner KP Singh, gangster Iqbal Mirchi are among the 500 Indians who have been named in the 'Panama Papers' of having links to tax havens.
An expose based on records of the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca names at least 500 Indians for allegedly paying the firm, which helps incorporate companies in offshore tax havens.
Rubbishing the claims, Aishwarya's media advisor Archana Sadanand said the allegations were 'totally' false. "What is this consortium (ICIJ) and what does it do? If this an authorised entity and how do we know the information they get is authentic? All information that you have given is totally untrue and false," Sadanand said.
DLF chief KP Singh also claimed he acted as per the law of the land. "It is submitted that the permissible modus operandi of RBI for remittance of money under permissible LRS limit each year allows a resident Indian to firstly open a bank account in a foreign bank and there after remit funds in it. The remittances were within prescribed limits and undertaken through authorised dealer," Singh said.
A massive leak of 11.5 million tax documents has exposed the secret offshore dealings of world leaders, businessmen, sports person and celebrities including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif along with 500 Indians.
"Amitabh Bachchan was appointed director in at least four offshore shipping companies set up in 1993. Similarly, Aishwarya Rai and her family members were registered in 2005 as directors of Amic Partners Limited. Her status was later changed to share holder before the company was dissolved in 2008. DLF promoters KP Singh acquired a company registered in British Virgin Islands in 2010. His family's three offshore entities hold almost $10 million," the English daily reads.
Experts claimed that as per Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines, Indian citizen are not allowed to start an overseas entity before 2003. However, in 2004, for the first time RBI has allowed individuals to remit funds up to $25,000 a year under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS). But it never allowed Indian citizen to set up companies abroad.
The documents were leaked from the law firm Mossack Fonseca and connect to 140 politicians in more than 50 countries. More than 500 Indians figure on the firm's list of offshore companies, foundations and trusts. There are also 234 Indian passports (handed over by clients as part of the incorporation process).
Two politicians including Shishir Bajoria from Kolkata and former chief of the Delhi unit of Loksatta Party Anurag Kejriwal also figured in the list.
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