India fails to attend international meet on combating tax evasion

New Delhi: India failed to attend an OECD meeting in Berlin where a multilateral agreement requiring a commitment to follow international standards of confidentiality for information received relating to black money was signed.

Official sources said that India was not able to attend the Berlin meeting where it was to sign a multilateral competent authority agreement and intended first information exchange date. Government of India had to give an international commitment that it would follow international standards on information received. Late night reports indicate that India was not able to attend that meet, they said without citing any reasons for the absence. At the meeting of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 51 countries signed the agreement to share financial data and boost efforts to crack down on tax evasion.

The signatories to the agreement include most European Union nations as well as tax havens like Liechenstein, British Virgin Island and the Cayman Island. They will begin automatically exchanging data collected by financial institutions as early as 2017, the OECD said.

New Delhi also fears that treaties for exchange of information on black money holders with countries like USA, Germany and Switzerland may be delayed on grounds of breach of confidentiality if names of account-holders are disclosed improperly.

Government fears emanate against the backdrop of the raging debate in the country over disclosure of names of black money holders in foreign banks given by other governments and entities.