CENTRE JUSTIFIES CERTIFICATION OF FINANCE BILL, 2017 AS MONEY
BILL; SC RESERVES VERDICT
The Centre on Tuesday in
the Supreme Court justified certification of Finance Bill, 2017 as a money bill
saying it has provisions which deals with salaries and allowance to be paid to
members of tribunals from the consolidated funds of India. The top court
reserved its verdict on a batch of pleas challenging the constitutional
validity of Finance Act, 2017 on the ground that it was passed by the
Parliament as a money bill. The Centre contended that certification of Finance
Act as money bill was done by speaker of Lok Sabha and court cannot judicially
review the decision. A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice
Ranjan Gogoi said, Hearing concluded. Order reserved. At the outset, Attorney
General K K Venugopal, appearing for the Centre said that certification granted
by the speaker cannot be challenged in the court of law The Attorney General
justified before the bench also comprising Justices N V Ramana, D Y
Chandrachud, Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna the certification of Finance Act as
a money bill saying it deals with payment and receipt made from the
consolidated funds of India. It is the whole part which has been certified as a
money bill and not in parts. Therefore no part can be severed to say that this
cannot be called as a money bill, Venugopal said. He referred to provision for
money spent on tribunals from the consolidated funds and said salaries and
allowances of tribunal members would come under incidental matters referred in
the Article 110 (1)(G) of the Constitution. Article 110 of the Constitution
deals with provisions as when can a Bill shall be deemed to be a Money Bill.
Venugopal relied on Aadhaar verdict of last year and said that the apex court
has held that the main object of Aadhaar Act was to extend benefits to marginalised
section of society in the form of aid, grant or subsidy from the consolidated
fund. Senior advocate Arvind Datar, who led the arguments for the petitioners,
argued that a bill which says that salaries shall be paid to the members of
tribunal does not in itself make it a money bill. He sought making the
tribunals independent saying their core judicial duty cannot be taken away or
at least they can be brought under the control of law ministry or one nodal
agency as held in 1997 and 2010 verdicts of the apex court. The top court was
hearing a batch of petitions challenging the Constitutional validity of the
Finance Bill of 2017.
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CBIC ASKS GST OFFICERS TO BE CAUTIOUS WHILE PROCESSING FRESH
REGISTRATION
Cracking down on tax
evaders, the CBIC has asked tax officers to be cautious while processing
application for fresh GST registration by those businesses whose earlier
registration has been cancelled due to non-compliance The Central Board of
Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) also directed tax officers to analyse the
information by an applicant in the fresh registration form regarding details of
proprietor, director/members of managing committee of associations/board of
trustees etc vis-a-vis any cancelled registration having same details. Recently,
a large number of registrations has been cancelled by tax officers on account
of non-compliance. However, it has come to notice of taxmen that such
businesses continue to operate without any registration and are not applying
for revocation of cancellation of registration and are instead applying for
fresh registration. Instead, many of them are applying for fresh registration,
so as to evade taxes which were due under earlier registration. It is
instructed that the proper officer may exercise due caution while processing
the application for registration submitted by taxpayers, where the taxpayer is
seeking another registration within the State although he has an existing
registration within the said State or his earlier registration has been
cancelled, the CBIC said in its communication to field offices.
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REALTORS CAN OPT FOR OLD GST RATES WITH INPUT TAX CREDIT TILL
MAY 10
Real estate firms have time
till May 10 to communicate to their respective jurisdictional officers whether
they want to continue with the old GST rates with input tax credit, failing
which they will be deemed to have migrated to new tax rates. The GST Council
had given the option to real estate companies to either opt for old rates of 12
per cent (for residential) and 8 per cent (affordable housing) with input tax
credit (ITC) benefits or the new tax rates of 5 per cent for residential units
and 1 per cent for affordable housing without the benefit of adjusting the
credit on inputs used during construction. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes
and Customs (CBIC) has issued a notification giving real estate companies a
one-time option to choose either of the tax rates. Provided that in case of
ongoing project, the registered person shall exercise one time option to pay
central tax on construction of apartments in a project at the rates as
specified by the 10th of May, 2019, the CBIC said. In case, realtors do not
exercise the option, they will be covered under the lower tax rate of 5 per
cent and 1 per cent with effect from April 1, 2019, and will not be entitled to
avail tax credit on inputs. Meanwhile, in a separate notification, the CBIC has
asked the real estate companies that will be migrating to the new rates to
prepare their books of accounts with regard to ITC and repay the over-used
credit, if any, to the government in 24 instalments. Further the CBIC has also
asked builders to maintain project wise account of inward supplies from
registered and unregistered supplier.
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TAX TAKE FROM 'PANAMA PAPERS' PROBES EXCEEDS $1.2 BILLION:
REPORT
Taxmen in 22 countries
worldwide have raked in more than USD 1.2 billion in fines and back taxes
thanks to the 2016 "Panama Papers" leak of information about offshore
dealings, media reported Wednesday. Britain has recouped some USD 253 million,
France $136 million and Australia $93 million, the International Consortium of
Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) posted on its website. German newspaper
Sueddeutsche Zeitung -- which received the massive leak of documents from
Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca on which the investigation was based --
reported Berlin has reaped USD 183 million from related tax probes. "While
recouping the proceeds of hidden assets helps to fund vital government services,
there is a growing sentiment that the enduring legacy of the Panama Papers will
be its effect on behaviour and public attitudes," the ICIJ said. Tax
authorities have scrambled to respond to the massive tax evasion system that
the leak revealed was organised through Mossack Fonseca's Panama City offices.
More than 100 media organisations participated in the investigation, which
uncovered accounts in tax havens held by 140 politicians, football stars and
billionaires and enjoyed a global media echo.
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AFTER ANGEL TAX, NOW A DEVIL TAX ?
A new Supreme Court ruling
has sent shivers down the spine of assesses, because they have to give full
information about investors On being unable to give information the dangerous Section
68 would be unleashed with the firm being taxed, right and left. Till now, the
angel tax was swooping down upon taxpayers, flapping it's wings but now the
devil tax, shaking it's horns, threatens to descend on every assessee. Case of
Principal Commissioner of Income-tax v. NRA Iron & Steel (P.) Ltd. - Pr.
CIT v. NRA Iron & Steel (P.) Ltd. [2019] 103 taxmann.com 48 (SC)
The Assessee-Company in
it's Income-tax Return showed that money aggregating to Rs. 17,60,00,000/-had
been received through Share Capital/Premium during the Financial Year 2009-10
from 20 companies situated at Mumbai, Kolkata, and Guwahati. The issue before
the AO was whether the amount of Rs. 17,60,00,000/-allegedly raised by the
Respondent through share capital/premium were genuine transactions or not? The
Assessee, inter alia, submitted that the entire Share Capital had been received
through normal banking channels by account-payee cheques/demand drafts, and
produced documents such as income-tax return acknowledgments to establish the
identity and genuineness of the transaction. It was submitted that, there was no
cause to take recourse to Section 68 of the Act, and that the onus on the
Assessee Company stood fully discharged. The AO had issued summons to the
representatives of the investor-companies. Despite the summons having been
served, nobody appeared. The Department only received submissions through dak,
which created a doubt about the identity of investor-companies. The AO
independently got field enquiries conducted at Mumbai, Kolkata, and Guwahat.
The enquiries at Mumbai revealed that out of the four companies, two companies
were found to be non-existent at the address furnished. Regarding Kolkata
companies, the response came through dak only. However, nobody appeared, nor
did they produce their bank statements to substantiate the source of the funds
from which the alleged investments were made. With respect to the Guwahati
companies – Ispat Sheet Ltd. and Novelty Traders Ltd., enquiries revealed that
they were non-existent at the given address. The A.O. also found that none of
the investor-companies which had invested amounts ranging between Rs. 90,00,000
and Rs. 95,00,000 as share capital could justify making investment at such a
high premium of Rs. 190 for each share, when the face value of the shares was
only Rs. 10; In addition, the companies were declaring a very meagre income in
their returns. The Assessee filed an Appeal before the CIT (Appeals) and placed
reliance on the decision of the Delhi High Court in CITv. Lovely Exports Pvt.
Ltd. [2008] 299 ITR 268 (SC) case. The CIT deleted the addition made by A.O. on
the ground that the Respondent had filed confirmations from the
investor-companies, their Income-tax Return, acknowledgments with PAN numbers,
copies of their bank account to show that the entire amount had been paid
through normal banking channels The ITAT too dismissed the appeal stating that
the investor companies had filed their returns and were being assessed. The
Delhi High Court also affirmed the decision of the Tribunal on the ground that
the issues raised before it were urged on facts, and the lower appellate
authorities had taken sufficient care to consider the relevant circumstances.
The Supreme Court heard
the matter on 5-2-2019 and pronounced that the issue which arose for
determination was whether the Assessee had discharged the primary onus to
establish the genuineness of the transaction required under Section 68 of the
Act. As per settled law, the initial onus was on the Assessee to establish by
cogent evidence the genuineness of the transaction, and credit-worthiness of
the investors under Section 68 of the Act. The assessee was expected to establish
to the satisfaction of the Assessing Officer as specified in [CIT v. Precision
Finance (P.) Ltd. [1994] 208 ITR 465/[1995] 82 Taxman 31 (Cal)] :
·
Proof of Identity of the
creditors; Capacity of creditors to advance money; and Genuineness of
transaction.
The practice of conversion
of un-accounted money through the cloak of Share Capital/Premium must be
subjected to careful scrutiny. This would be particularly so in the case of
private placement of shares, where a higher onus is required to be placed on
the Assessee since the information is within the personal knowledge of the
Assessee. The Assessee is under a legal obligation to prove the receipt of
share capital/premium to the satisfaction of the AO, failure of which, would
justify addition of the said amount to the income of Assessee. On the facts of
the present case, clearly the Assessee-Company failed to discharge the onus
required under Section 68 of the Act and the Assessing Officer was justified in
adding back the amounts to the Assessee's income. The Appeal filed by Revenue
was allowed. In the aforesaid facts and circumstances, and the law laid down
above, the judgment of the High Court, the ITAT, and the CIT were thereby
set-aside. The Order passed by the AO was restored. A dreaded provision, Section
68 imposes a super heavy tax of 83.25% which is frightening. With the new
Supreme Court ruling, companies face the daunting task of living fully informed
about investors. It is absolutely essential that Section 68 should be modified
so that task of finding about investors is performed by the income-tax department.
Companies should not be asked to do cop duty. Here's a recent conversation
overheard at income-tax office: One income-tax officer asked: Have you given
all information about investors? The assessee replied: Yes. The tax official
persisted: Everything??? The assessee said: Yes, everything. The tax officer
again asked: Has full information been given about each and every investor? The
assessee replied: Yes, every investor has been covered. I have even given the
horoscope of each investor.
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FY19 EXPORTS MAY BE HIGHEST EVER AT $330 BILLION
Amid slowing global
merchandise trade growth, India’s exports are likely to register an all-time
high of $330 billion this fiscal The growth is propelled by higher exports of
pharmaceuticals, petroleum and engineering, said an official aware of the
details. India’s total outward shipments were $303.5 billion in 2017-18. The
all-time high is $314.4 billion posted in 2013-14. March exports are expected
to be above $30 billion, buoyed by strong performances by engineering and
pharmaceuticals sectors. Services exports are likely to cross $200 billion in
FY19, taking overall exports to over $500 billion. Prabhu is confident of
India’s exports touching new heights this year. This happened because we had
our sectoral strategy, an institutional mechanism a product-geography matrix,
he told.
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INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT PLANS DEEP DIVE INTO BIG DATA THIS YEAR
The income tax department
will go full throttle on its use of big data in 2019-20 to book tax evaders as
its IT infrastructure for profiling assessees becomes fully operational. The
department’s ‘project insight’, which uses data analytics to identify
individuals who present a high risk of tax evasion to nudge them with text
messages, phone calls and emails to ‘voluntarily’ comply with the tax laws,
will be fully rolled out in the new financial year. Some functionalities of the
project are already activated, a government official said on condition of
anonymity. Project insight seeks to capture information that assesses ought to
have declared but have not. It will help tax officials in various tasks,
including nudging assessees to file returns where a default is noticed, said
the official. The government resorting to exhaustive profiling of assessees to improve
tax compliance is significant considering that it now has massive amounts of
data in its possession about transactions in the economy after the rollout of
the goods and service tax in 2017. Manufacturers with annual sales above ₹20
lakh were originally required to register for GST, down from the ₹1.5
crore sales limit that existed until then for them to take a central excise
registration. Although the GST registration threshold has being raised in most
states to ₹40 lakh from April, the indirect tax reform has established a
strong paper trail for transactions across the business value chain. This, and
information about Indians’ foreign bank accounts obtained from overseas tax
authorities, details about property transactions, rental income, motor vehicle
purchases and spending pattern of individuals incompatible with their reported
income will increasingly be processed to figure out how much tax evasion risk
an assessee poses. It also means a smaller part of the total number of
taxpayers will be subject to scrutiny every year. The project is
transformational in the way the tax department works. Prior to using data
analytics, the department had to ask assessees wide-ranging questions and ask
for numerous documents, which raised the concern that the taxman was on a
fishing expedition. This is no longer the case. Now the tables have turned. The
tax department knows precisely what it wants explained, said Frank D’souza.
This makes investigation very effective and will help in improving the tax to
GDP ratio, said Dsouza.
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FISCAL DEFICIT TARGET LOOKS CLOSER ON HIGH GST MOP-UP
The goods and services tax
(GST) and savings on expenditure may have saved the day for the government,
taking it within kissing distance of the fiscal deficit target of 3.4% of GDP,
offsetting shortfall in direct tax collections. GST collections touched their
highest since the single levy was launched in July 2017, coming in at Rs 1.07 lakh
crore in March, data released by the government on Monday showed. Annual GST
collections are seen at Rs 11.77 lakh crore, ahead of the revised estimate of
Rs 11.47 lakh crore in the February 1 interim budget. This uptick in GST
collections comes even as rates were cut on a number of products during the
year. Growth in GST could have been much higher if we take the tax cuts into
account, said a top government official. The higher collections will help meet
the shortfall in direct taxes. In the revised estimate for FY19, the government
had raised the direct tax target to Rs 12 lakh crore from Rs 11.5 lakh crore.
As taxes trickle in after last-minute efforts by taxmen on both direct and
indirect taxes, North Block officials exuded confidence about meeting the
fiscal deficit target of 3.4% of GDP. The fiscal deficit had exceeded the full
year target for FY19 by 34.2% at the end of February, triggering concern that
the target may not be met. The government may have also cut some spending to
stay within the budgeted number. Arun Jaitley said the jump in GST collections
was signalled by an expansion in manufacturing and consumption. The record
collection in March 2019 of the GST touching Rs 1,06,577 crore indicates the
expansion in both manufacturing and consumption, Jaitley tweeted on Monday.
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SUSPICIOUS TRANSACTIONS: OVER 1,700 JAN DHAN ACCOUNTS IN UP
UNDER SCANNER OVER DEPOSITS JUST AHEAD OF POLLS
About 1,700 Jan Dhan bank
accounts in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad district have come under the scanner of
the Election Commission-deployed surveillance teams for receiving suspicious
deposits during the poll season, officials said. They said about Rs 10,000
each, totalling about Rs 1.7 crore, have been deposited in these accounts over
the past few days and the instances have come under the scanner of
investigative and intelligence agencies for possible abuse by political
candidates as bribe to voters. The Income Tax department has launched an
investigation into the issue, along with other agencies deployed to check black
money and illegal inducements to voters during the ongoing polls in the
country. The EC has sought a report from the agencies and they have informed it
that the bank concerned in Moradabad district of Uttar Pradesh has been asked
for a report and preliminary inputs suggest the money was deposited by banking
correspondents, they said. The next level of probe is on, the officials said,
adding it could be a case of some government scheme money or funds being
deposited in these accounts. The Election Commission (EC) has deployed a large
team of expenditure monitoring observers in all the constituencies to keep a
check on illegal cash and other inducements to voters during the polls. The
teams, tasked to ensure a level-playing field for all the candidates trying
their luck at the hustings, are being supported by the intelligence and
enforcement setups of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), Customs
department, the Intelligence Bureau, the Financial Intelligence Unit and the
Enforcement Directorate.
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I-T DEPARTMENT GOES HI-TECH, USES SATELLITE IMAGE TO NAB TAX
EVADER
The Income Tax (I-T)
officials have used satellite image to nab a tax evader claiming that this is
apparently the first such approach by the department. With the help of the
image, tax evasion of Rs 15 crore has been brought into the light The principal
director (investigation) of I-T, Amrendra Kumar said that, The department is taking
help of technology to nab those who are evading tax. He added that this is
probably the first-ever case of using satellite image to reach the accused and
the technology will be used in future too. Explaining the matter, Kumar stated
that a person from Modinagar, in February 2016, got the registry of a
commercial land showing it as an agriculture land to evade tax. The tax
department somehow got the information and sent a notice to him to which he
replied that the land in question is an agriculture land only, the official
added. He further said that the department did not believe him and asked the
National Remote Sensing Agency (Hyderabad) to send an old image of the land.
After receiving the image from the agency, the complete details were checked
and it was found that at the time of registry there was a commercial complex
already build on the land in question. With the image as evidence, the accused
was sent a notice again. Now, the accused has to pay Rs 15 crore as tax because
in such cases, the tax rate is 100 per cent. The tax department is using
hi-tech measures to keep a check on tax evaders. Apart from using satellite
images, the department has also incorporated other improved technologies to
limit fraud-related cases.
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AHMEDABAD FIRM'S HEAD ARRESTED FOR RS 88 CRORE GST EVASION
A local firm's promoter
has been arrested for allegedly evading Goods and Services Tax (GST) worth Rs
88 crore by raising fraudulent invoices officials said Tuesday. The preventive
wing of central GST Ahmedabad-South Commissionerate busted a racket of issuance
of fake invoices wherein huge amount of ineligible input tax credit was
fraudulently availed and utilised to evade GST payment, an official statement
said. Sandeep Agrawal, was arrested on Monday for availing wrong input tax
credit of Rs 88.78 crore on bogus invoices worth Rs 672.32 crore without
receipt of actual goods, according to the statement.
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DGTR IMPOSES ANTI-DUMPING DUTY ON IMPORTS OF EVA SHEETS USED
IN SOLAR CELLS
India has imposed an
anti-dumping duty on imports of a certain type of sheet used in solar cell
making from China, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Thailand for five years to safeguard
domestic players against cheap shipments. In a move, Directorate General of
Trade Remedies (DGTR) recommended that the imposition of duty on the imports of
Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) sheets to offset dumping and injury caused by
dumped imports from China, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand. The duty is
aimed at ensuring fair trading practices and creating a level playing field for
domestic producers with regard to foreign producers and exporters. In a
notification, the Department of Revenue said that after considering the
recommendations of the commerce ministry's investigation arm DGTR, it is
imposing the duty, which is in the range of USD 537 to USD 1,559 per tonne, on
imports of EVA. The anti-dumping duty imposed shall be effective for a period
of five years (unless revoked, superseded or amended earlier), it added
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GOVERNMENT IMPOSES 10% DUTY ON PCBS TO BOOST LOCAL HANDSET
MANUFACTURING
The Indian government imposed
a 10% duty on imports of populated printed circuit boards (PCBs), camera
modules and connectors, making the imports of the components expensive while
giving a stimulus to local manufacturing under its Make in India program. The
move, which is likely to lead to increase in the prices of mobile phones for
those companies that do not make or source these components locally, clears up
the confusion for the handset industry which was expecting this duty to come as
part of announcements in the Union Budget in February. The Central Bureau of
Excise and Customs, imposed the 10% duty on each of the components, through
notifications issued on Monday. The wing of the finance ministry also said that
input parts for making these components locally, will not attract any import
duties. This follows the government’s decision to impose a 20% BCD on fully
built mobile phones, which came into effect from February 1, as part of its
phased manufacturing program (PMP), which gives a forecast into duty incentives
to spur local production of mobile phones.
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GOVT EXTENDS IMPORT RESTRICTIONS ON PEAS AND PULSES
To curb cheap imports of
peas and pulses in the wake of surplus production of the commodity in the
country, the government has again extended the import restrictions on them. According
to the notification of Directorate General of Foreign Trade, The notification
comes into force with effect from April 1, 2019. India is the largest producer
of pulses in the world.
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LOWER GST APPLICABLE TO UNSTITCHED THREE-PIECE SALWAR /
CHURIDAR SETS: AAR
The Authority for Advance
Rulings (AAR), Tamil Nadu has held that a salwar/churidar-kurta set comprising
three pieces, top, bottom and dupatta which are just fabric or articles of
apparels would attract 5% GST The authority clarified that a completely
unstitched sets will be classified as ‘fabrics’ and attract five per cent GST,
just embroidery or embellishment will not make any difference to it. The authority
also held that partially stitched churidars will make it ‘Article of Apparel’
for which 5 per cent (for sale value less than Rs. 1,000) or 12 per cent (for
sale value more than Rs. 1,000) would be applicable Palayamkottai, Tamil
Nadu-based RmKV Fabrics approached AAR to get an advance ruling on
classification of three piece salwar/churidar-kurta-dupatta sets. The applicant
put forward four models to determine ‘fabrics’ or ‘Article of Apparel.’ The
first model has unstiched top and bottom where top is merely cut into size. The
second model comprises top semi-stitched and bottom unstitched. The third model
has top stitched, but bottom unstitched. Finally, the fourth model has top and
bottom unstitched, but only the neck portion is cut and design is made — which
meant partial stitching. However, in all the cases, the fabrics themselves
could have some embroidery work/hemming or embellishments on them.
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NON MEMBERS NOT AGGRIEVED PERSON SO AS TO HAVE RIGHT TO
CHALLENGE DISCIPLINARY ORDER OF ICAI
The Hon’ble Supreme Court
had dismissed a special leave petition (SLP) against the order of the Hon’ble
High Court in holding that non members do not have a right to challenge the
order passed by the Board of Discipline or the Disciplinary Committee of ICAI. There
was a dispute between the Petitioner and his brother. The Petitioner lodged a
complaint for misconduct against the Respondent CA for giving an adverse report
against him in the litigation between him and his brother. The Petitioner
therefore lodged a complaint with the Disciplinary Directorate of the Institute
of Chartered Accountants of India. This complaint was investigated by ICAI and
prima facie an opinion was recorded that the respondent chartered accountant
was not guilty of professional misconduct falling within the meaning of clauses
6, 7, 8 and 9 of Part-I of the Second Schedule to the Chartered Accountants
Act, 1949 (the Act). Aggrieved, by the order of the Disciplinary Directorate of
ICAI, the Petitioner filed a Writ Petition before the Hon’ble High Court. The
Petitioner sought a declaration that Section 22G of the Chartered Accountants
Act, 1949 in so far as it denies a Non member a right to appeal against the
decision of ICAI dismissing complaint, is ultra vires and contrary to Articles
14, 19 and 21 of Constitution of India and is consequently illegal. The Hon’ble
High Court observed that Section 22G of the Act enables any member of the ICAI
to institute an appeal to the Authorities in case he is aggrieved by the order
of the Disciplinary Committee imposing any of the penalties referred to in
subsection (3) of Section 21A and subsection (3) of Section 21B may within 90
days from the date on which the order is communicated to him. It was also noted
that the proviso to Section 22G also enables the Director (Discipline) to file
an appeal against the decision of the Board of Discipline or the Disciplinary
Committee to the Authority within a period of 90 days. Thus, the Hon’ble High
Court opined that a person aggrieved by the order or decision of the Board of
Discipline or the Disciplinary Committee can challenge the order of the Board
or the Disciplinary Committee and such provision is not arbitrary, unreasonable
or discriminatory. The Hon’ble High Court opined that the Petitioner who had no
personal or individual right in the subject matter, cannot be said to be an
aggrieved person so as to have a right to challenge the order passed by the
Board of Discipline or the Disciplinary Committee.
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HOW NIRAV MODI STOPPED SHELL COS’ EXECUTIVES FROM RETURNING TO
INDIA
Death threats to witnesses
weren’t the only alleged tricks in Nirav Modi’s bag. The fugitive billionaire
jeweller also allegedly used powers of persuasion and forced confinement on
dummy directors of his overseas shell companies to dissuade them from returning
to India after investigation into the Rs 13,600-crore PNB scam began in January
last year. The funds from banks were diverted to these shell companies. Fearing
that the dummy directors would spill the beans on the one of the biggest frauds
in the Indian banking sector, Nirav seamlessly switched between intimidation
and inducement to convince them that they would arrested and their assets
seized if they returned home, said sources in the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Citing statements of witnesses, the sources said these dummy directors were first
assembled in Dubai, UAE, and then flown to Cairo in Egypt for temporary
confinement against their wishes. The entire cost, including airfares, was
allegedly borne by Modi, said a source. During the period of their forced stay,
passports of the dummy directors were allegedly taken away They were allowed to
return only after much cajoling and persuasion—and that too only two at a time
and after signing a few legal documents, said sources. According to a source, a
key case accused, Subhash Parab, an executive of Firestar India (a jewellery
firm headed by Nirav) who was called the link with the bank, was allegedly sent
to Cairo, too, with the others and is yet to return from there. It is also
alleged that phones of the dummy directors were destroyed. Details of these
alleged attempts to thwart investigation were presented in a London court on
March 29 during a hearing of Nirav’s second bail application, which was
subsequently rejected. Mirror had reported that he had also allegedly
threatened Ashish Lad, one of the dummy directors and witness in the case, that
if he didn’t accept Rs 20 lakh and provide a false statement, he would be
killed. Lad, who had recorded his statement with the ED, had alleged that he
had received a death threat over the phone while in Egypt from Nirav. The court
was also that Modi allegedly held business visa/employment visa/Schengen
visa/residential visa of seven countries, including the USA, the UK, Hong Kong,
the UAE, Singapore and Canada, as discovered by the ED. In December 2017, Modi
also allegedly attempted to seek citizenship of Vanuatu Island in the South
Pacific Ocean, which was later turned down. Nirav’s lawyer who represents him
in India declined to comment on the allegations. Nirav and other accused have
denied all wrongdoing.
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FORMER IL&FS VICE CHAIRMAN HARI SANKARAN PUSHED FOR RS
175-CRORE LOAN TO SIVA FIRM: SFIO
Hari Sankaran, the former
vice chairman of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services who was
arrested on Monday, was allegedly instrumental in getting a Rs 175-crore loan
sanctioned to a company owned by person with whom he had a close relationship,
the Serious Fraud Investigation Office said in its court application seeking
his custodial remand. The remand filing also listed other misdemeanours by
former IL&FS board members that amounted to misuse of public money
including funding borrowers to prevent their loans from turning bad, getting
personal favours in exchange for sanctioning loans and enriching themselves
with hefty salaries and perks. The Rs 175-crore loan given by IL&FS
Financial Service Ltd. (IFIN), a subsidiary of IL&FS, to an entity of the
Siva group was cited as one of the instances of alleged conflict of interest
committed by Sankaran. Siva group chairman C Sivasankaran is said to be close
to Sankaran. The SFIO said Sankaran pushed for the loan, fully aware that the
transaction would harm the company’s interests. Investigations showed that
Sivasankaran had a close relationship with Sankaran and Rs 175 crore was
advanced despite the resistance/observations of the team and the fact that the
company was not able to recover Rs 500 crore of an earlier loan granted to
Sivasankaran group entities, according to a copy of the report filed by the
SFIO in a Mumbai court on Monday. The loans given to the Sivasankaran group
were for repayment of earlier loans and interest and this had affected IFIN’s
asset quality, although they were projected as fresh lending on paper, the SFIO
alleged.
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COMMERCE MINISTRY FOR ANTI-DUMPING DUTY EXTENSION ON ALUMINUM
ALLOY WHEELS FROM 3 NATIONS
The commerce ministry has
recommended extension of anti-dumping duty on aluminum alloy wheels from China,
Korea and Thailand for another five years to guard domestic manufacturers from
cheap imports. Concluding its second sunset review of anti-dumping probe on
imports of these wheels being exported by these nations, the ministry's
investigation arm DGTR stated that there is a likelihood of dumping if the existing
anti-dumping duties are allowed to cease. The authority is of the view that
continuation of the duty is required against all these countries on the tyres,
used in motor vehicles, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has
said in a notification. It has recommended imposition of definitive
anti-dumping duties on the imports of the subject goods (wheels), originating
in or exported from China, Korea and Thailand for a period of five years. The
duty would be in the range of USD 0.08 per kg to USD 2.15 per kg.
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PUNJAB HAWALA MONEY RECOVERY: OPEN FOR ANY PROBE, EVERY SINGLE
PAISA COUNTED, PACKED IN FRONT OF I-T OFFICIALS, SAY POLICE
Punjab Police chief Dinkar
Gupta Monday ordered a probe into the allegations levelled by a church priest
who has claimed that the Khanna police embezzled Rs 6.65 crore from the total
money they claimed to have recovered from his house. The money, Father Anthony
Madassery of Diocese of Jalandhar, said was proceeds of business transaction
kept at his house. P K Sinha will conduct the probe, as per an official
statement from the office of the Director General of Police. Khanna police
claimed to have recovered Rs 9.66 crore in ‘hawala’ money from six men
including Father Anthony, Friday. However, the priest Sunday alleged that when
the police raided his residence on Friday, Rs 16.65 crore was recovered and
officials from the South Indian Bank, who were present there, had counted the
money using a machine as it was to be deposited in the bank. On Friday, Khanna
police had claimed recovery of nine crore sixty-six lakh sixty one thousand and
seven hundred rupees from the priest and his five accomplices and the case was
handed over to the I-T and Enforcement Directorate (ED). The police claimed it
was black money and six persons were running hawala racket.
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MAHARASHTRA: COPS SEIZE RS 6.20 CRORE CASH POST CODE OF
CONDUCT ANNOUNCEMENT
The Income Tax department,
police and state excise has seized Rs 19.82 crore 'unaccounted' cash Rs 38.36
crore gold, Rs 13.64 crore worth liquor and drugs and psychotropic substances
worth Rs 3.96 crore across Maharashtra. The seizures were made by the police
after code of conduct for the Lok Sabha elections was announced. An Election
Commission of India (ECI) official said the seizures of cash and gold were
subject to investigations and the stash could be returned to the owners if they
accounted for it. IT officials have also seized cash worth Rs 6.20 crore from
the Zaveri Bazaar area in Mumbai after the code of conduct for the Lok Sabha
elections were announced. He added that banks have been instructed to inform
the Election Commission in case of suspicious transactions like dormant
accounts being suddenly used for transactions. The ECI has received 60
complaints of violation of the code of conduct in the Mumbai city district
through it's CVigil app of which 55 include posters and banners being put up
illegally, have been acted upon. The collectorate has deleted names of 70,000
duplicate and deceased voters from the list from May 20, 2018. The city has
2,601 polling booths and 2,666 voters have registered themselves as persons
with disabilities and 310 service voters. Around 16,000 staff have been pressed
into election duty in the 10 state assembly seats that cover the two Lok Sabha
seats in Mumbai city.
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GAUTAM KHAITAN MOVES FRESH BAIL PLEA IN MONEY LAUNDERING CASE
Advocate Gautam Khaitan,
an accused in the AgustaWestland scam, Tuesday moved a fresh plea in a Delhi
court seeking bail in a separate black money and money laundering case in which
he is currently arrested. Special CBI Judge Arvind Kumar, who had on March 12
dismissed a similar application filed by Khaitan, issued a notice to the
Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking their reply by April 9. In the
application, the accused's advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey claimed that Khaitan was
not required for further investigation as the probe in the present case was over
since the ED has already filed the charge sheet. He told the court there were
no apprehensions that the accused may tamper with the evidence or influence the
witnesses. The court directed ED's special public prosecutor N K Matta and
advocate Samvedna Verma to respond to the application.
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PNB FRAUD: NIRAV MODI INTENDS TO APPEAL FOR A BAIL IN UK HIGH
COURT
Fugitive diamond merchant
Nirav Modi, undergoing extradition proceedings in the UK, intends to appeal for
bail in the UK High Court after a second bail application was rejected by a
lower court in London last week in the $1-billion Punjab National Bank (PNB)
fraud and money laundering case. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which
represents the Indian authorities through the extradition process in the UK
courts, said the 48-year-old intends to appeal against Judge Emma Arbuthnot's
decision to turn down his bail plea at the end of a hearing at Westminster
Magistrates' Court last Friday on the grounds that there was a substantial risk
he would fail to surrender. Mr Modi intends to appeal his bail decision, but he
has not yet submitted the appeal, a CPS spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday. The
diamond merchant, who has been behind bars at HMP Wandsworth in south-west
London ever since his first bail application was rejected on March 20, can
apply for a High Court bail appeal at any time until his next remand hearing on
April 26.
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IPL SPOT-FIXING: DELHI HC ASKS FOR STATUS OF NOTICE TO
SREESANTH, OTHERS
The Delhi High Court on
Tuesday asked its registrar to check whether all those discharged along with
cricketers S Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan have been served a
notice that was issued on the police's appeal in the 2013 IPL-6 spot-fixing
case. Justice Sunil Gaur sent the matter to the registrar, who will file a
report on the issue of service of the notice to the parties concerned. List the
matter before the registrar who shall give a report whether any of the
respondents remain unserved, the court said, while fixing the case before the
registrar for April 10.
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EUROPEAN UNION LAUNCHES WTO CASES AGAINST INDIA, TURKEY
The European Union has launched
two World Trade Organization disputes against India over import duties on IT
products and against Turkey over measures affecting pharmaceutical producers
The European Commission, which oversees trade policy for the 28-member European
Union, said in a statement on Tuesday that the total value of affected EU
exports was more than 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) per year. In the case
against India, the EU is challenging the introduction of import duties of
between 7.5 and 20 percent for a wide range of IT products, such as mobile
phones and components, as well as integrated circuits, the Commission said. In
the case against Turkey, the Commission said the bloc is challenging measures
that force foreign pharmaceutical producers to move their production to Turkey.
The first step of WTO dispute settlement is a 60-day consultation period. The
EU can request a WTO panel ruling on the cases if the consultations do not
resolve the issues.
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GLOBAL TRADE MAY FACE SLOWDOWN IN 2019; WTO LISTS TWO KEY
REASONS
Global trade growth is
expected to be lower in 2019 than it was last year, the World Trade
Organisation forecast on Tuesday, citing widespread tensions and economic uncertainty
The WTO had in its preliminary estimates predicted a 3.7 per cent expansion of
trade for this year, but has revised that down to 2.6 per cent, marking a
decline on the three-percent growth recorded in 2018. The fact that we don’t
have great news today should surprise no one who has been reading the papers
over the last 12 months, Roberto Azevedo told. In its main annual forecast, the
164-member WTO renewed its concerns about systemic threats that could continue
to disrupt the world’s economy, notably retaliatory tariffs between China and
the United States. There are indications that ongoing talks between Washington
and Beijing could resolve the bruising tariff battle, but timelines for a
possible deal are not clear. Asked if he saw either side emerging victorious in
the trade spat between the world’s two largest economies, Azevedo said there
will be many losers. It was therefore becoming increasingly urgent that
tensions are resolved, he added in a statement.
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INDIAN ARMY TARGETS TERRORIST LAUNCH PADS IN LOC
Indian security forces
have been hitting suspected terrorist launch pads in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir
(POK) during the ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC),
officials said on Tuesday. The army claims to have hit launch pads located in
Nikial, Rakhchakri, Kotli and Bhimber in PoK over the past few days. Some of
these areas are notorious for Border Action Team (BAT) attacks against Indian
Army posts and patrols across the Line of Control (LoC). Terrorist launchpads
have been hit in Nikial, Rakhchakri, Kotli and Bhimber. Kotli, especially, is
known for such launchpads, said one of the officials cited earlier. The army
top brass believes that Pakistan will attempt to carry out attacks through BAT—comprising
Pakistani Special Service Group commandos and terrorists—sniping, planting of
improvised explosive devices (IEDs) near Indian patrols, and using
infrastructure against it, said officials. Even Pakistan Army facilities that
are involved in supporting terrorists have been hit, they said. The ceasefire
violations between the armies of both countries has increased since the
February 14 Pulwama terrorist attack which killed over 40 CRPF soldiers. It was
especially high on February 26, when the Indian Air Force bombed a terrorist
facility in Balakot in Pakistan, and the next day when the Pakistan Air Force
made a failed attempt at targeting Indian military installations in Jammu and
Kashmir. The firing from the Indian side is to also ensure that no space is
given to Pakistani troops to carry out sniping against Indian soldiers. It is
also being done to prevent any movement aimed at planting IEDs. Pakistan, on
the other hand, has been firing at Indian Army positions and posts along the
LoC in Poonch and Krishna Ghati sectors. It is also doing the same in Naushera,
Bhimber Gali and Mendhar sectors. On Monday, an inspector of the Border
Security Force and a five-year-old girl were among three people killed, while
several were injured in the Pakistani firing along the LoC in Poonch.
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SHAH GENERATED FUNDS FROM PAK TO CREATE UNREST IN KASHMIR: ED
The Enforcement
Directorate Tuesday told a Delhi court that jailed Kashmiri separatist leader
Shabir Shah generated funds from Pakistan and other countries to carry out
unrest in the Valley. The agency made the submission before Additional Sessions
Judge Satish Kumar Arora while opposing Shah's bail application in a decade-old
money laundering case for alleged terror financing, in which the accused is
currently lodged in Tihar central jail. ED's special public prosecutor N K
Matta told the court that Shah was involved in generation of huge proceeds of
crime from various countries, including Pakistan, to carry out unrest in Kashmir
and amassed huge wealth in the form of immovable and movable assets. Advocate
Samvedna Verma, appearing for ED, told the court that if granted the relief,
Shah may use his influence in threatening the witnesses and may not be
available for facing the trial. Accused Shabir Shah is involved in channelizing
the illegal money sources from foreign countries, i.e., Pakistan, avoiding
banking channel to fund the terror organisations in Jammu and Kashmir and other
parts of the country and if released on bail, he may use his influence in
pressurizing/ threatening the witnesses and may not be available for facing
trial, the agency said. It also alleged that Shah was in regular touch with
Hafiz Sayeed, Chief of Pakistan-based banned terror outfit, Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD).
There are serious allegations against Shah and further investigation in the
case was going on and the properties were being identified, the ED said, adding
that it was trying to establish the money trail.
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INDIAN SENTENCED TO 16 MONTHS IN JAIL FOR $200,000 CALL CENTRE
SCAM IN US
An Indian national has
been sentenced to 16 months in jail after being convicted for being part of a
call centre scam that victimised over 340 people in the US and resulting in
over $200,000 in losses, the Department of Justice said Wednesday. Mehboob
Mansurali Charania was convicted in January after he pleaded guilty to engaging
in an unlicensed money transfer business. The sentencing for Charania, who
moved to Georgia in 2014, would be followed by three years supervised release,
it said. He has also been ordered to pay a $100 special assessment and pay
restitution of $203,958.02 to victims of the scheme. The phone scheme, Charania
was a part of, used lies, intimidation, and fear to extort or outright steal
from unsuspecting citizens, US Attorney Byung J 'BJay' Pak said. According to
Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, J Russell George, since
October 2013, more than 15,000 victims have suffered over $75 million in losses
to the perpetrators of telephone scammers who impersonate Internal Revenue
Service (IRS) employees. US investigation has identified 140 scammers who, have
or are, facing federal criminal proceedings, the Department of Justice said.
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INDIA GETS CUSTODY OF 2017 CRPF CAMP ATTACK PLOTTER FROM UAE
India has secured the
deportation of Nisar Ahmed Tantray, a Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist and main
conspirator behind the December 2017 attack on a CRPF camp at Lethpora in Jammu
& Kashmir, from the UAE. Five security personnel were martyred in the
attack during the intervening night of December 30 and 31, 2017, which ended
with the killing of three Jaish terrorists. Nisar Tantray, brother of Jaish
divisional commander in South Kashmir Noor Tantray who earned fame as a midget
terrorist being just four feet tall, was brought to Delhi by a special flight
on Sunday and handed over to the NIA, which is probing the Lethpora case. Noor
Tantray, said to have been instrumental in establishing Jaish in the Valley,
was killed in an encounter in December 2017. A warrant of arrest had been
issued against deported terrorist Nisar Tantray by a special judge, NIA court,
which facilitated his deportation. The UAE has been extending exemplary cooperation
in deporting fugitives, including terrorists, in the past few years. They
include AgustaWestland bribery case accused Christian Michel, alleged defence
middleman Deepak Talwar, apart from several Islamic State sympathisers and
terrorists, including senior Indian Mujahideen operative Abdul Wahid Siddibapa
and 1993 Mumbai blasts accused Farooq Takla. Tantray is believed to have
escaped to the UAE earlier this year. This was just before another accused in
the Lethpora case, Fayaz Ahmad Magray, a resident of Awantipora, Pulwama, was
arrested in February. The three terrorists killed during the attack were
identified as Fardeen Ahmed Khandey, a resident of Tral; Manzoor Baba, a
resident of Drubgram, Pulwama; and a Pakistani terrorist namely Abdul Shakoor,
a resident of Rawalakot area of POK. Fayaz, arrested by the NIA, was an active
overground worker of Jaish and a key conspirator who provided logistical
support such as providing shelter to terrorists.
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U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT APPROVES SALE OF 24 MH-60R CHOPPERS TO
INDIA, WORTH $2.6 BN
The U.S Department of
State has approved the sale of 24 MH-60R multi-mission helicopters to India
under its Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. The value of the potential is
$2.6 billion, as per a statement released on Tuesday by the Defense Security
Cooperation Agency (DSCA), the body that administers the FMS program. The
principal contractor for the deal will be Lockheed Martin. The DSCA submitted
its certification notifying the U.S. Congress of the possible sale, kicking off
a 30-day notification period. Congress is not required to approve or disapprove
the potential sale. If it simply takes no action for the 30 day period, the
sale moves forward. The proposed sale will provide India the capability to
perform anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare missions along with the ability
to perform secondary missions including vertical replenishment, search and
rescue, and communications relay. India will use the enhanced capability as a
deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defense, the DSCA
said.
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DONALD TRUMP SAYS '100 PER CENT' READY TO SHUT DOWN MEXICO
BORDER
President Donald Trump
said Tuesday he is 100 per cent prepared to close down the US-Mexico border
warning Congress and Central American governments to take action to stem the
flow of migrants into the country. Delays were already rising at several key
border crossings as Trump ratcheted up pressure on Democrats in Congress to
toughen US laws against illegal immigrants, threatening to hurt the US economy
in the name of border security. It is a national emergency on the border, Trump
said. If Mexico does not stop migrants from transiting across its territory,
and if Congress does not act, he said, the border's going to be closed, 100 per
cent. Sure it's going to have a negative impact on the economy, he said.
Security is more important to me than trade. Trump said Democrats were blocking
reforms for political reasons but could fix the problem in 45 minutes. He was
not specific, but Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen has asked
Congress to give border officials the power to forcibly repatriate Central
American illegal immigrants, including children who arrived alone, back to
their countries. The threat to close the border, which handled some USD612
billion worth of trade in 2018, sent shivers through the economy, and drew
warnings from allies of the president.
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GHOSN MAY FACE FRESH CHARGE FOR PARKING $32 MN OF NISSAN FUNDS
IN OMAN
Tokyo prosecutors are
considering pressing a fresh charge on former Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn, local
media said Wednesday, which would be the latest twist in the auto tycoon's
dramatic downfall Investigators are eyeing a possible aggravated breach of
trust charge related to at least $32 million in Nissan funds transferred to a
distributor in Oman, according to local news agency Jiji Press. Some of the money
is believed to have been used to buy a luxury boat allegedly used by Ghosn and
his family, according to a source familiar with the matter. If Tokyo
prosecutors were to move forward with the case, it would be the fourth criminal
charge against the 65-year-old former high-flying auto executive, who denies
all allegations.
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EU REBUKES BRITAIN OVER ILLEGAL TAX BREAK TO MULTINATIONALS
The EU’s powerful
anti-trust authority on Tuesday said a tax break from Britain for unnamed
multinationals was illegal under state aid rules, firing a shot at London amid
Brexit chaos. The European Commission gave no indication of the amount of money
to be recovered nor the companies involved, but said the tax break unduly
exempted certain multinational groups from UK anti-tax avoidance rules. This is
illegal under EU State aid rules. The UK must now recover the undue tax
benefits, European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a
statement. The decision was a partial one, the EU said, with other aspects of
the investigation finding no fault in Britain’s tax decisions. But it lands
just days after March 29 -- Britain’s originally-slated date to leave the EU --
and serves a reminder that the UK will be expected to meet its EU membership
obligations before and after Brexit. The EU pressed on with the campaign in
January and launched an in-depth probe into Nike’s tax affairs in the
Netherlands. The decision against Britain involves something called controlled
foreign company rules that help prevent firms from using an offshore subsidiary
to avoid British tax.
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3 INDIAN-ORIGIN CONSULTANTS CHARGED IN US WITH H-1B VISA FRAUD
Three Indian-origin
consultants have been charged in the US with visa fraud for allegedly
submitting sham applications for H-1B visas to gain a competitive advantage
over competing firms. A federal grand jury last month indicted Kishore
Dattapuram, of Santa Clara, Kumar Aswapathi, of Austin, Texas, and Santosh
Giri, of San Jose, on 10 counts of substantive visa fraud and one count of
conspiracy to commit visa fraud, the Justice Department said in a statement. The
H-1B visa programme allows foreign workers to obtain temporary authorisation to
live and work for employers in the United States. In order to secure an H-1B
visa, an employer or other sponsor must submit an 'I-129' petition to the
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. A petition and associated
documentation must confirm the existence and duration of the job waiting for
the worker, and describe key details including the wages associated with the
position. According to the eight-page indictment, Dattapuram, 49, Aswapathi,
49, and Giri, 42 operated Nanosemantics, Inc, a Santa Clara-based consulting
firm whose services included placing skilled foreign workers at software and
technology companies in the Bay Area. They worked together to submit fraudulent
H-1B visa applications on behalf of foreign workers in order to gain a
competitive advantage over competing firms. According to the indictment,
several of the I-129 petitions submitted by defendants stated that particular
workers had specific jobs waiting for them at designated companies when, in
reality, the defendants knew that these jobs did not exist. Further, the
defendants allegedly sought the cooperation of third parties to conceal their
fraud.
#For Source of Information copy and paste the heading in google.
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
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