Vijay Mallya reaches out to Indian officials, may want to return: Report

Under this recently promulgated ordinance, the government can immediately confiscate all linked properties of Mallya in the country and abroad

Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya, the main accused in a Rs 9,000 crore alleged bank fraud case, is understood to have sounded out to Indian authorities that he was willing to come back home to face the law, official sources said on Tuesday.

Mallya, who is contesting in a London court the Indian government's action for extradition, is said to have sent feelers to authorities that he would like to join the legal process in India and contest the recent action against him under the Fugitive Economic Offender Ordinance.

Under this recently promulgated ordinance, the government can immediately confiscate all linked properties of Mallya in the country and abroad.

However, top sources in investigative agencies said the final contours of the move are still not clear as they refused to divulge more details.

A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act court in Mumbai had last month issued summons to the beleaguered businessman to appear before it on August 27 on the Enforcement Directorate's plea seeking action against him under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance in the over Rs 9,000 crore bank fraud case.

The central probe agency, as part of this action, has also sought immediate confiscation of assets worth around Rs 12,500 crore of Mallya.

If he does not appear before the court or respond to its summons on the designated date, Mallya risks being declared a fugitive economic offender, besides properties linked to him being confiscated.

Mallya, his now defunct venture Kingfisher Airlines Limited and others availed loans from various banks during the tenure of the UPA-I government and the outstanding amount, including interest, against him is Rs 9,990.07 crore at present, officials had said.

He had recently said he has become the "poster boy" of bank default and a lightning rod for public anger.

The liquor baron had said that he had written letters to both the prime minister and the finance minister on April 15, 2016, to explain his side of the story.

Both the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have filed separate criminal cases of alleged loan default against him.

A hearing in the extradition case is expected to be heard in London this month end where a team of Indian investigators will remain present.

'Demonetisation may have cost banks Rs 3,000 cr per day'

On Wednesday, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) withdrew its previous directive that required deposits above Rs 5,000 in old currency notes be justified to two bank officers. To understand the impact of this move, Business Standard spoke to the HARVINDER SINGH, general secretary of the All India Bank Officers Confederation.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has withdrawn its previous directive that required deposits above Rs 5,000 in old currency notes to be explained to bank officers. What do you make of this?

Breaking News : We have been pleading before RBI and Ministry of Finance that instructions issued for general public must be always clear. What was happening was that instructions issued through electronic media or notifications were reaching banks much later than when the people at large were coming to know. There was time gap between the implementation of the instructions issued by the RBI/government because when the instructions reach banks, they would have to modify their systems so that the instructions are implemented.

For example, one instruction came that we will permit withdrawal of 2.5 lakhs per family where there are marriages. Lot of conditionality were put. But these instructions were made viral during the mid of the day but actually these instructions were received by banks two days after. For these 2-3 days bank officers were facing a lot of problem.

Right from the day this policy of demonetization was declared we have been pleading with the RBI and government that you consult with us. We will give you the ground level problems. We will give you suggestions for smoother implementation. But no opportunity was ever granted to us.Read more.

Panama Papers: Why probe by Indian agencies may yield nothing

Black money is back in focus with the expose by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists that shows  hundreds of Indians were shareholders and/or directors in companies incorporated in distant islands by Panama-based firm Mossack Fonseca in a bid to avoid tax.

Soon after the revelation, the government declared that action will be taken against said accounts held abroad by Indians and constituted a multi-agency group to continuously monitor information. Panama papers have named 500 people, including film actors and industrialists who have allegedly stashed money in offshore entities.

The assurances given by the BJP-led government to bring back black money in India has largely being ineffective. Possible reasons would be polices that have been established to curb accrual of black money have not been enforced by the agencies or existing legal and administrative framework which has its own limitations.

Is it so easy to float a company abroad? Would they able to get evidences against the said entities named in Panama Papers? What are the limitations, Business Standard explores.

Is it so easy to float a company abroad?

Some countries are following the disclosure norms reluctantly, while in some jurisdictions, the KYC norms are more liberal than others. According to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) norms, liberalized remittances scheme (LRS) allowed individuals even minors to remit amount up to $250,000 ( Rs 1.65 crore as on date) each year abroad under self declaration. This is for studies, medical treatment, buying property overseas or holding shares in an overseas company or a combination of both.

Will they get evidences against entities named in Panama papers?

Getting information from other countries is a cumbersome task. There are limited options before Indian authorities which includes Letter Rogatory (LR), a formal request from a court to a foreign court for some type of judicial assistance. The most common remedies sought by LR are service of process and taking of evidence.Read More.

Panama Papers: From Amitabh Bachchan to Adani's brother, names of 500 Indians leaked

Bollywood mega-star Amitabh Bachchan's (pictured) name has been mentioned in the leaked files

What do Bollywood superstars Amitabh Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, DLF owner K P Singh and Gautam Adani’s elder brother Vinod Adani have in common?

According to a report in The Indian Express on Monday, these names, among 500 others, figure on a Panama law firm's list of Indians who have setup offshore companies in tax havens through the firm's services.

A huge data leak at Panamanian firm Mossack Fonsecahas revealed that it hid billions of dollars in assets of global politicians, sports stars and entertainers.

The files, called the "Panama Papers" and comprising over 11 million documents from the firm, have revealed names which will shock many.

The problems for Mossack Fonseca, a hitherto unheard of name for the vast majority of Indians and people the world over, began when 2.6 terabyte worth of its confidential data was leak to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).

According to the ICIJ, the consortium, together with the German newspaperSuddeutsche Zeitungand more than 100 other media partners, conducted the investigation into the papers over a period of a year.

The conclusion: Information on more than 214,000 offshore companies connected to people in more than 200 countries and territories unearthed.

But what exactly does being an Indian on the list entail?

The Indian Express, a partner in the investigation called "Project Prometheus", explains: "Some of the Indians floated offshore entities at a time when laws did not allow them to do so; some have taken a technically convenient view that companies acquired is not the same as companies incorporated; some have bunched their annual quota of remittances to subscribe to shares in an offshore entity acquired at an earlier date. Still, some others have received income earned abroad and deposited it in the entity to avoid tax. Some have opened a bank account to keep payoffs in government contracts, or held “proceeds of crime” or property bought with money made illegally in Trusts/ Foundations."

The report suggests that many of the Indians, featured in this Panama Leaksand who set up these offshore entities prior to 2013, are likely in violation of the Reserve Bank of India's Liberalised Remittance Scheme — introduced in February 2004.Read More.

India Aviation takes off, govt reaches out to industry

The fifth edition of India Aviation 2016 kicked off in Hyderabad on Wednesday with a focus on developing the country as a manufacturing and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) hub, bringing to together airline promoters, chief executives and bureaucrats.

On the occasion, along with Make in India, the government also emphasised its focus on plans for regional connectivity, which received a boost in Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's Budget 2016.

The event also attracted three biggest airlines from the Gulf - Emirates from Dubai, United Arab Emirates' Etihad Airways and Doha's Qatar Airways, as these companies marked a presence for the first time in the biennial show.

Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said the first day of the five-day event saw participation from 25 countries, with ministerial-level participation from four countries. "The country's aviation sector has grown by about 35 per cent from the time the show was conducted in 2014, with an unparalleled 20 per cent growth in domestic traffic," said Raju.

The Indian aviation 2016 sector is witnessing its most buoyant period on the back of low fuel prices and passenger growth. According to estimates by International Air Transport Association, India's domestic air travel soared 22.9 per cent in January, compared to a year ago. Growth is being propelled by the comparatively strong domestic economy and increases in air services.

The Indian market overtook both Australia and Japan during 2015 and is currently level with Russia at around 1.2 per cent of global passenger traffic.

Emirates specially flew in its jumbo Airbus A380 for the show and Qatar Airways is displaying an Airbus A350, the latest in its fleet.

With India clocking the highest growth rate in the aviation sector for almost a year now, the country has become important for the airlines.

Why was Vijay Mallya allowed to leave India, Cong asks govt

The Congress Party on Thursday criticised the BJP-led NDA Government for not arresting liquor baron Vijay Mallya and allowing him to leave the country freely.

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad said Mallya is not a small instrument like a needle, which cannot be seen from a far distance.

Read More.

Start-ups bat for tax sops, investment incentives in Union Budget

The startup community, which has started facing funds crunch of late, is looking to the Union Budget 2016 for an easy tax regime, relaxation in investment norms and furtherincentives for innovation.

The country is home to over 18,000 startups, making it the third-largest in the world after the US and England.

“iSpirt has represented to the finance ministry that a small basket of tax sops merely will not be effective for the existing system which is riddled with several bottlenecks," co-founder of iSpirt Foundation Sharad Sharma told PTI. Read More.

Budget 2016: Fiscal Framework: Review medium-term fiscal stance

Fiscal hawks might not like it but the Budget 2016 has made a case for reviewing the medium-term fiscal framework in the upcoming Budget News. It, however, has argued that there were “good” arguments for both relaxing the fiscal deficit target and keeping it.

The framework mandates the government to cut its fiscal deficit to 3.5 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) next financial year and 3 per cent by 2017-18 from the targeted 3.9 per cent in the current financial year.

Budget 2016: Subsidies: Plug subsidy leaks to help fiscal consolidation

If lower tax rate is equivalent to subsidising, the National Democratic Alliance government is clearly targeting the 'well-off' segment of the population. Unlike the previous years, the Budget 2016 has dealt with the issue of subsidy by giving only a box on petroleum subsidies, while devoting a chapter with nine-and-a-half pages to 'Bounties for the Well-Off'.

Read more from our special coverage on "BUDGET 2016"

• Budget News
• Budget Photos
• Budget Discussion

Maternal and child health could be a top priority for the government, says Economic Survey

Understanding that relatively low-cost maternal and early-life health and nutrition programmes offer very high returns on investment, investing in these two sectors could become a top policy priority of the government, said the economic survey, Budget 2016.

“One can build clinics in villages or transfer money to pregnant mothers or build latrines, but how does one bring out the right usage of all this physical capital is the next task in front of the government,” stated the survey.Read More.

Rail Budget 2016 Live:

Rail Budget 2016 Live: Operating ratio at 92% this year, up from 90% last year, says Prabhu

Markets likely to remain volatile, Railway Budget eyed

Stock markets are likely to see volatile trading sessions this week amid derivatives expiry, with all eyes set on two key events -- Railway Budget and Economic Surveyreport, say experts.
"Trend in global markets, crude oil prices, Economic Survey, reform measures announcement in upcoming Railway Budget and rupee-dollar movement will dictate trend on the bourses. Indices may remain volatile with positive bias ahead of expiry of February series derivative contract in the week ahead," said Gaurav Jain, Director, Hem Securities.