The Supreme Court today asked the Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by former apex court judge Justice M B Shah, to file a fresh status report by May 12 on the progress made by it on black money probe.
A bench comprising Chief Justice H l Dattu and justices Madan B lokur and A K Sikri said that it has not received any new report and asked senior advocate Soli Sorabjee, appearing for SIT, to "request" the probe team to submit a fresh status report on or before May 12 so that "we can have a look at it before the summer vacation". The apex court had on January 20 asked SIT to consider suggestions of senior advocate Ram Jethmalani who had filed a PIl in 2009 on the black money issue, on the way forward to bring the illegal money stashed in banks abroad.
The court had also said that the SIT, after considering the suggestions in accordance with law, would be sending "a copy of its report to that effect" in a sealed cover to the apex court.During the hearing today, the bench said that it will go through the report first and then decide as to whether it can be given to Jethmalani and asked him to wait till that time.
Jethmalani, who is being represented by senior advocate Anil Divan, said, "there is a determined effort to frustrate the judgement (on black money)." The bench also agreed with the concerns of Jethmalani on the issue and said, "we are with you on that". On the last date of hearing, the bench had said it was more interested in getting back the black money stashed abroad than the disclosure of names of illegal account holders.
However, the Bench had accepted Jethmalani's plea that the apex court-appointed SIT should consider his suggestions on bringing back black money stashed abroad. Divan had alleged that "not a single rupee has come to this country" in the last six months and only some searches and attachment of properties have been carried out.
The apex court had also granted three weeks time to Divan to file reply to the stand of the Centre which has so far shown unwillingness to share documents concerning its correspondence with French Government on the issue. Earlier, Centre had said that it has submitted all documents and communications to the SIT which has to take a call for supplying them to the petitioners.
The issue concerns list of 627 Indians who have accounts in HSBC Bank, Geneva, in which tax probe for suspected black money had to be completed by March 31. The documents containing correspondence with French authorities, names of the account holders and the status report of the probe conducted so far were submitted in separate sealed covers by Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi which the apex court had not opened.
Rohatgi had said that whatever names have cropped in the probe "we are bringing them and the cases in which the prosecution has been launched and the names have been disclosed." He had said all income tax assessments relating to the accounts of Indians in HSBC bank, Geneva, would be completed soon.
However, Divan and advocate Prashant Bhushan, who is an intervenor in the matter, demanded that the publication of the names would act as deterrent and put fear into those having stashed the money abroad and chanellised into drugs, terrorism and human trafficking.
Divan said international investigative journalists have published some 1,200 names of Indian account holders. Divan, in the application containing suggestions on the steps to be taken to bring back the illegal money stashed abroad, cited three important documents available in public domain, viz., article written by Ajit Doval, present National Security Advisor, Task Force report submitted to BJP and the current administration's manifesto, on the steps to be taken to bring back black money stashed aboard.