Unauthorised disclosure of info can sabotage probe: Jaitley

Unauthorised disclosure of info can sabotage probe: Jaitley
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Highlights

Questioning those demanding disclosure of names in violation of tax treaties, Jaitley said: \"The Congress Party’s stand is understandable.

  • If you have information on black money, share it with SIT
  • CBI wants its officers posted in some Indian missions

New Delhi: Lashing out at those, including the Congress party, who want the government to make names of black money holders public, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said unauthorised disclosure of such names can sabotage investigation and benefit the guilty.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President  Amit Shah and Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley during the party's Central Election Committee meeting  for the upcoming Assembly elections  in New Delhi on  Sunday. (PTI)
"An unauthorised disclosure of information is fraught with both investigation and economic consequences. They can sabotage the investigation. They can attract sanctions in the form of withholding taxes," he said in a Facebook post on a day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that all efforts would be made to bring back black money stashed abroad.

Questioning those demanding disclosure of names in violation of tax treaties, Jaitley said: "The Congress Party’s stand is understandable. It does not want evidence to be forthcoming in support of the names available with SIT. Are some others ill informed, just indulging in bravado or are they Trojan horses?"

The Minister exuded confidence that the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which has been entrusted by the Supreme Court with the investigation, will succeed in bringing out the truth and the NDA government made available all the names in its possession to the SIT on 27th June, 2014 itself. "The NDA Government has had an exemplary record in this matter... It will continue to support the SIT fully and unequivocally in search of truth," Jaitley said. Anyone who has specific and definite information on black money can share it with Supreme Court-appointed SIT going into the issue that can crack down on those stashing money abroad and at home.

The Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice M B Shah, will open a channel of communication shortly through which the public can use to share "definite" information and vital inputs about black money including foreign bank accounts. The SIT, which also has former apex court judge Justice Arijit Pasayat as Vice-Chairman, has said such a step was aimed at detecting and prosecuting all direct or indirect instances of illegal generation of funds and evasion of government taxes.

"We will be issuing a public advertisement in this regard very soon...May be within a week's time. Members of the public can write to the SIT through the Internet and send to it to the official email id which will be publicised or send it by post to the secretariat of the panel," Justice Pasayat told PTI.

Meanwhile, CBI has sought posting of its officers in some of the Indian missions abroad besides cutting down of red-tape involved in sending Letters Rogatory(LR) as measures to expedite cases related to black money.

"We have submitted a note to the Special Investigation Team in which we have elaborated about the measures that are required from the point of view of the probe agency," CBI Director Ranjit Sinha told PTI before leaving for Monaco.

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