New Panama Papers ‘leak’ includes 12,000 documents linking Indians to secret tax havens
Around 12 lakh new documents have emerged linking individuals or organisations to secret tax havens, with Indian personalities figuring in at least 12,000 of them. These are the findings of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung, in collaboration with The Indian Express, in what is the second “leak” of Panama Papers-related documents since 2016.
The fresh investigation reveals how Mossack Fonseca, the firm at the heart of the first expose, tried to respond to the allegations in 2016. In the process, it confirmed the existence of several customers, including Indian clients, who had earlier denied their links.
The new set of documents, known as Panama Papers: The Aftermath, highlights details of offshore companies incorporated by several Indian businessmen who did not figure in the 2016 leak. These include Ajay Bijli, owner of PVR Cinemas, and members of his family; Kavin Bharti Mittal, the chief executive officer of Hike Messenger and son of Sunil Mittal, and Jalaj Ashwin Dani, son of Asian Paints promoter Ashwin Dani, The Indian Express reported.
The new documents also show that Mossack Fonseca served notices to several offshore firms set up by Indians to produce missing information in 2016. These letters contained the names of the firm’s beneficial owners, or demanded that it be immediately disclosed.