JOIN US"(Income Tax) Department's position stands vindicated. It is a clear cut case of deliberate non-compliance to law on misplaced legal advice," Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Acting Chairman Sudhir Chandra said.
"This (Vodafone case) is a test case, we will look at similar cases. There are already some cases under investigation," he said. The authorities had slapped a tax notice on UK-based Vodafone over its acquisition of Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa's stake in Indian telecom joint venture Hutch Essar for USD 11 billion in 2007, saying the buyer was liable to pay capital gains tax.
The CBDT's comments come within days of the Vedanta Group signing a deal to acquire UK-based Carin Energy's Indian arm for USD 8.43 billion. On when the department would slap a tax notice on Vodafone, the officials said the Bombay High Court has given time to Vodafone to go in for an appeal in the Supreme Court.
The tax notice, they said, would be issued after the expiry of the eight-week period or on Supreme Court directions. The Bombay High Court had earlier in the day ruled that the Income Tax Department has the jurisdiction to levy tax on Vodafone though the multi-billion dollar deal was signed outside the country.