New Delhi:
It was another rough hearing in the Supreme Court for the government as it explained its efforts to investigate the Indians who are suspected of having channelled their black money abroad.
The court rejected the government's stand that because of the nature of its treaties with countries like Switzerland, it cannot publicly declare the list of Indians who own and operate bank accounts that house their black money.
"In 2008, the government came to know that certain Indians have accounts in Swiss banks. Instead of talking about double taxation and this treaty and that treaty, a simple question could've been asked. From where did they get this money? No effort has been made by the government to find the source of this money and the fact remains that the government has not made any progress. It's not like they're foreigners. They're amenable to your laws," said the judges hearing the case.
The Supreme Court has repeatedly said that the government is not making enough effort to pin down the source of black money. In earlier hearings, the judges said drug trafficking, for example, could be a root cause.
The court also ordered the government to videograph interrogation of suspects like Hasan Ali, a businessman from Pune arrested earlier this month for allegedly accumulating 8 billion dollar of black money in foreign accounts.
Yesterday, the government told the court that it accepts Hasan Ali's concern that his life is in danger because of the information that he is now disclosing about his business associates. The Enforcement Directorate which arrested Mr Ali and has been questioning him said that its own investigators also deserve special security.
The court said, "Why should we order that protection be given to them? It's the duty of the government to protect them".