Bombay High Court stays notice to Aberdeen

Mumbai: In a breather to foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) who have been dogged by retrospective demands on the minimum alternate tax (MAT) from 2008, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday stayed tax notice issued to Scottish portfolio investor Aberdeen. 

 

The interim stay comes a day ahead of the High Court taking up the writ petition filed by five FPIs last week against MAT notices issued by tax authorities.

The I-T department has sent tax notices demanding MAT on the profit they earned from trading in stocks and bonds to 68 FPIs, seeking a cumulative Rs 603 crore in dues beginning from assessment year 2008. 

 

A division bench, headed by Chief Justice Mohit Shah, was hearing a petition filed by Scotland-based Aberdeen Global Emerging Markets challenging the I-T notice and assessment orders. 

 

Similar petitions had been filed by National Westminster Bank Plc, First State Asia Pacific Sustainability Fund, First State Indian Subcontinent Fund, First State Global Emerging Market Sustainability and BNP Paribas L1. They will come up for hearing on Wednesday. The counsel, appearing for Aberdeen, argued that there was no effective alternate remedy available to them and hence they approached the High Court.