Swiss black money probe: Preneet Kaur under investigation

New Delhi: The Indian Government pursued Switzerland to continue their probe into Swiss accounts of several citizens and special attention is asked for the investigations of alleged accounts of former Congress leader Preneet Kaur and her son Raninder Singh.

According to Swiss norms for help in tax matters, involving sharing of account and other details, the Federal Tax Administration (FTA) of Switzerland informed Kaur and Singh to put a plea within ten days for their right to be exercised.

The Swiss tax department has disclosed this information in two distinct notices issued today in the government-owned federal gazette.

The notice did not release any information about the two, apart from their nationality and dates of birth. No comments have been yet given by Kaur and her son.

Earlier this year in a leaked list of Indians with HSBC Geneva bank accounts, Kaur was mentioned, although she had repudiated having any such account on her name with any foreign bank. She had also mentioned that she had recorded a statement earlier with the tax authorities.

The BJP-led NDA government had then said that even the highest and the mightiest with black money overseas would not be saved.

As part of a bilateral accord for administrative help and inflow of evidence from Switzerland, India has asked for facts about various persons and firms from the country.

This initiative is taken to crackdown on alleged black money stockpiled in Swiss banks.

Over a dozen Indian names with implicit accounts in the bank have already been disclosed. Several applications are unresolved with the Swiss authorities. The announcement regarding the affected entity's right to appeal is mostly the first step in the data interchange procedure.

These steps are being looked as helpful initiatives by Swiss government in-principle and supportive of them sharing the evidence of illicit bank accounts.