Now Reading: ITAT Delhi upholds Rs 1.86 lakh penalty for undisclosed UAE assets
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ITAT Delhi upholds Rs 1.86 lakh penalty for undisclosed UAE assets
The Delhi bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has upheld a Rs 1.86 lakh penalty under the Black Money Act against taxpayer Ashok Shankar for failing to disclose a UAE…
The Story in Brief
The Delhi bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has upheld a Rs 1.86 lakh penalty under the Black Money Act against taxpayer Ashok Shankar for failing to disclose a UAE bank account and shares in a Dubai company in his income tax returns. The case originated from a 2016 search related to the Sanjay Bhandari group, with UAE authorities providing bank details and corporate records in April 2019.
Shankar claimed the AED 5,000 in his Emirates NBD account was a friend's deposit for a business that never started, and that he had forgotten about the account. The tribunal rejected his explanation, noting lack of evidence, and held that under the Black Money Act, the relevant assessment year is when the asset comes to the assessing officer's notice, here, 2020-21.
The Indian Opinion
The case shows the long arm of the Black Money Act, but Indians with legitimate foreign assets need not panic. The penalty was modest, Rs 1.86 lakh, and resulted from a taxpayer who apparently forgot an account and could not prove its purpose. The bigger takeaway is that international tax information sharing is real and belated explanations rarely work. The real test will come when the department pursues larger, more complex foreign holdings: will the legal process remain as straightforward, or will high-stakes cases drag on for years?
Sources (2): livemint.com, livemint.com (2)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
