India has called upon G20 countries to adopt multilateral action for faster extradition of fugitive economic offenders and recovery of assets both on domestic front as well as from abroad during the first anti-corruption working group meeting held in Gurugram.
Chairing the meeting with co-chair Italy, Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh said, “Economic offences have been a problem faced by many, especially when the offenders flee from the jurisdiction of the country. India has put in place specialised legislation in this regard, in the form of Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, the term wherein ‘fugitive economic offender’ (FEO) is defined as an individual against whom a warrant of arrest in relation to scheduled offence has been issued by any court in India and who has left the country so as to avoid criminal prosecution; or the FEO abroad, refuses to return to face criminal prosecution”.
He said the Enforcement Directorate has transferred assets worth about $180 billion to public sector banks that suffered losses to the tune of around $272 billion due to frauds committed by high-net-worth individuals.
India’s view is that strengthening of mechanisms for speedy confiscation of the proceeds of crime, both at home and abroad, will force the offenders to return to their home country, Singh further said.
He added that this will allow for an effective investigation and speedy trial for the related offence and this would also help the banks and other financial institutions and tax authorities to achieve recovery from defaults committed by such FEOs, thus restoring, to some extent, the overall health of these banks and other financial institutions, while eliminating the possibility of further misuse of these funds.
Singh said, as the primary forum for global economic cooperation, the G20 has to take responsibility to lead global efforts towards battling the menace of corruption.
FCRA licence of think-tank Centre for Policy Research suspended
The Ministry of Home Affairs has suspended the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) registration of the Centre for Policy Research (CPR), a Delhi-based think tank, for 180 days.
A senior government official said the FCRA registration of the public policy research institution was suspended on February 27. “The registration was suspended as prime facie violation of FCRA provisions were found,” the official said. The CPR’s office was surveyed by the Income Tax department on September 7, 2022.
FCRA registration is mandatory to receive foreign funds. The suspension meant that the association will not be able to receive any fresh foreign donations or utilise the existing foreign donations without the Ministry’s clearance.
The CPR said in a statement that the MHA has intimated that its registration under the FCRA has been suspended for a period of 180 days.
“In September 2022, the IT [Income Tax] department conducted an Income Tax survey at the CPR premises. As part of the survey follow-up process, CPR received several notices from the department. Following due process, detailed and exhaustive responses have been submitted to the department. CPR has and continues to cooperate fully with the authorities,” it said.
It added that the association is in complete compliance with the law and is routinely scrutinised and audited by government authorities, including the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
U.K. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly raises issue of BBC tax searches with Jaishankar
British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly raised the issue of Income Tax department searches on BBC offices in Delhi and Mumbai in bilateral talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
“[The] U.K. Foreign Secretary brought up [the] BBC tax issue with [the] EAM today,” a government source told The Hindu. “He was firmly told that all entities operating in India must comply fully with relevant laws and regulations,” the source said.
The I-T department searches followed the broadcast of a two-part BBC documentary on Prime Minister Modi, which was banned in India. Members of the U.K.’s House of Commons, from across the political spectrum, had strongly criticised tax raids on the BBC. Officials from the Indian and British governments have had discussions about the BBC and the fallout of the documentary.
Cleverly said that he had raised the BBC raids issue during his meeting with Jaishankar and told the Minister that the BBC was independent and “separate” from the British government, ANI reported.
Last week Jaishankar had said the BBC documentary was a “hatchet job” and suggested that “election season” had begun in London and New York.
Bhima Koregaon case | Bombay High Court directs NIA to reply to bail plea of 4 accused
The Bombay High Court issued notices to the NIA in a plea filed by four accused in the Bhima Koregaon caste violence case seeking default bail.
A Division Bench of Justices A.S. Gadkari and P.D. Naik was hearing a plea filed by Mahesh Raut, Sudhir Dhawale, Shoma Sen and Rona Wilson, all arrested on June 6, 2018. The court directed the agency to file its response in three weeks.
The petitioners have challenged an order of the special court in Pune under the Act, rejecting their default bail applications of 2019.
“In August 2018, the investigation officer in the case had filed an application to extend the time to file a chargesheet against them and next month a Pune sessions judge granted him an extension of time to file the chargesheet,” they contend.
According to them, the special judge granted an extension to the Central agency without having the jurisdiction to do so.
The petitioners are also seeking bail on grounds of parity as co-accused in the case. Sudha Bharadwaj was granted bail on December 1, 2021 by the Bombay High Court. Her default bail was also filed on grounds that the judge did not have the jurisdiction to reject default bails.
The same Bench of the High Court also directed the NIA to reply if another co-accused, Surendra Gadling, currently lodged at Taloja Central Jail, should argue his own default bail application in court.
GST revenues grow 12.4% in February 2023
India’s GST revenues grew 12.4% in February 2023 to over ₹1.49 lakh crore, with tax receipts from goods imports rising 6% and domestic transactions along with services imports yielding 15% more, compared to a year ago.
The ₹1,49,577 crore gross GST kitty collected in February marks the 12th successive month that monthly revenues have been over ₹1.4 lakh crore, although it was 5.06% lower than January’s ₹1,57, 554 crore receipts. However, the year-on-year growth in January was a tad lower than February at 11.75%.
Central GST (CGST) collections were at ₹27,662 crore in February, while State GST (SGST) accounted for ₹34,915 crore. Integrated GST (IGST) inflows stood at ₹75,069 crore (including ₹35,689 crore collected on import of goods), while GST Compensation Cess collections hit a record high of ₹11,931 crore, which included ₹792 crore on import of goods.
“This month witnessed the highest cess collection of ₹11,931 crore since implementation of GST. Normally, February being a 28-day month, witnesses a relatively lower collection of revenue,” the Finance Ministry said about the February GST receipts that pertain to transactions undertaken in January.
Among the States, the collection trends were very mixed, with 15 States’ reporting growth in line with or higher than the 15% growth in domestic revenue, and 14 States seeing slower upticks. Meghalaya was the only State to report a contraction in revenues, slipping 6% compared to February 2022.
“The government has settled ₹34,770 crore to CGST and ₹29,054 crore to SGST from IGST as regular settlement. The total revenue of Centre and the States after regular settlements in the month of February 2023 is ₹62,432 crore for CGST and ₹63,969 crore for the SGST,” the Ministry added.
In Brief:
With the crucial Presidential election in Nepal just nine days away, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda will seek a vote of confidence and reshuffle his Cabinet only after the polls, according to reports. Prachanda is preparing to reshuffle his Cabinet to fill as many as 16 Ministries, which fell vacant after three political parties pulled out of his government, as part of his efforts to keep the newly formed fragile coalition together. Government spokesperson Rekha Sharma said Prachanda will seek a vote of confidence and reshuffle his Cabinet only after the Presidential polls on March 9, the Kathmandu Post newspaper reported.
Evening Wrap will return tomorrow.
