The Income Tax (IT) Department, on Monday, told the Delhi High Court that the offer of Finnish mobile maker Nokia to pay a minimum deposit of Rs. 2,250 crore to it is not acceptable.
Nokia India, however, stuck to its offer. A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Sanjeev Sachdeva observed “you (Nokia) are offering nothing“.
To this, senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for Nokia, said “we are not in a position to offer more” and added that Rs. 2,250 crore is minimum depending upon the outcome of its deal with Microsoft. Earlier, the handset-maker had sought lifting of a stay on transfer of its assets in India, saying the court’s injunction will jeopardize the sale of its Indian arm to Microsoft under the $7.2-billion global deal. The bench listed the matter for December 9, when Nokia has to give details of its assets and liabilities as well as how much tax it has paid here.
Our Staff Reporter adds:
A company spokesperson pointed out that Monday’s hearing was about unfreezing of the assets and not the final hearing on the ongoing tax issue. “The Court had sought some clarifications from Nokia in the asset freeze case. We will continue to cooperate with the government and tax authorities on the ongoing tax case,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
