Subramanian Swamy is on a warpath with the Finance Ministry. Days after sending a request to the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for Sanction to Prosecute “corrupt” Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia, Swamy has now sought details about controversial deals under Right to Information Act (RTI). As many as 10 RTIs were filed on September 26th by the BJP leader seeking details of contracts given to private vendors regarding the Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN), Adhia submitting Gold Biscuits received from fugitive Nirav Modi to Toshakhana, details, and copy of file notings signed by Adhia favouring Anil Ambani, Ratan Tata, Vodafone etc.
These tough questions and details sought by Subramanian Swamy have created a lot of tension in the Finance Ministry and according to many staffers, Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia rushed to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley with copies of these 10 RTIs. Majority of the questions were related to the controversial and illegal decisions related to the Goods and Service Tax (GST)’s tax collection network GSTN, which has been recently taken over fully by the Government.
Swamy sought the file noting and decisions illegally taken by Adhia to make GSTN funding out of mandatory General Financial Rules (GFR). Swamy sought to know whether Finance Ministry took Cabinet’s approval in exempting GSTN from the General Financial Rules. This illegal decision was taken to avoid auditing by CAG about the funds pumped to GSTN, in which majority shares were held by private banks like HDFC and ICICI Bank. PGurus has written a series of articles on this blatant illegality[1].
Other questions regarding GSTN were on how Infosys was selected and allotted more than Rs.3,000 crores ($405 million) and how the private company was selected without tender[2]. Swamy also sought the details of decisions taken by Adhia during his stint as a temporary Chairman of GSTN. He also asked who approved this additional post and objections raised by Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) in the constitution of GSTN with private banks and private financial firms having majority shares? BJP leader also sought the details about how Adhia overruled these objections of CBEC.
Swamy’s other RTI application was about the controversial and illegal acceptance of Gold Biscuits by the Finance Secretary as Diwali Gift in 2016 from fugitive Nirav Modi and later illegally submitting to Toshakhana, the Government-dignitaries-gift-accepting centre during foreign travel[3]. Adhia still maintains a blatant lie that he is not aware of who gifted Gold Biscuits to him!
Other questions were regarding the tax benefits given to Anil Ambani and Ratan Tata’s trusts. The RTIs sought details of Rs.100 crores ($13.5 million) tax exemptions to Anil Ambani in a customs related matter and more than Rs.1000 crores ($135 million) income tax exemptions allowed to Tata Trusts approved by Hasmukh Adhia as Finance Secretary. Another RTI was regarding the allowing of Vodafone’s demand to go for second arbitration in England, while the company was losing to Income Tax in the Netherlands.
The Finance Ministry has transferred Swamy’s RTI to concerned departments for replying within 30 days. It is learned that Adhia has directed all department heads to consult him on the replies as the matters are highly sensitive. Hasmukh Adhia is retiring on November 30 and is lobbying hard to get an extension or to get the post of Election Commissioner, say sources close to him. He feels that Swamy is trying to drag him to courts for the controversial decisions in GSTN and Gold Biscuits accepting controversy.
Note:
1. The conversion rate used in this article is 1 USD = 74.13 Rupees.
References:
[1] GSTN tender scam – Will Hasmukh Adhia speak now? Why was Rs.1400 crores allotted bypassing the Union Cabinet? Mar 29, 2018, PGurus.com
[2] Did Hasmukh Adhia convert GSTN into a UPA-3 project? Mar 30, 2018, PGurus.com
[3] Is Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia shielding PNB scamsters Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi? Mar 21, 2018, PGurus.com
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[…] Subramanian Swamy files 10 RTIs to Finance Ministry seeking GSTN funding, Tax exemptions to Tata &am… – Oct 6, 2018, […]
India is massively corrupted as every facet of governance has been infiltrated with this immorality. Its a disease that had taken root at the very onset of independence with the Netas having propagated this further unscrupulously, thereby bringing about generations after generations living and believing that corruption is the only way. Dr. Swamy is a rare Indian commodity who has been God-sent to clean the system. I pray for his longevity and good health so that he can achieve his great service of cleaning India.
Who cares what pgurus is writing. Keep doing swamy bhakti.. you don’t have your own soul.
Finance department officials along with the Minister to be brought to book and convicted for their misdeeds which ruins the country in general and in particular PM. However people are not fools to just ignore their inept handing of the matters. related to present day crisis.
Adhira is lobbying for CEC ?! Oh, My God !!!!
Looks like Corruption is the Only Major Religion in India.
I urge the RSS and BJP stalwarts outside Govt to propose the name of Dr Subramanian Swamy as BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate for the May 2019 General Election. He alone can stop and set right the seventy plus years of loot of public money from this Country. I had pinned great hopes on Narendra Modi, but he has belied my expectations on GOOD GOVERNANCE like no sustained efforts on anti corruptions initiatives, Ram Mandir etc. and I IMPLORE RSS to intervene in the interest of our Nation and take timely action, before irreparable damage is done.
BJP was in opposition, criticized Congress is mother of corruption more than 07 decades.
Now BJP ruling stages, being in central blindly supporting Ambani, IL&FS Titanic ship, neglecting HAL, leads country in a very bad position.
Think the Last Salvo has heen fired! Let all the submarines surface!
If nothing still works after this then wish that Swamy takes lead and try becoming PM himself in 2019.
Salutations to Shri. Subramanian Swamy for being non partisan when it comes to fighting corruption. Wishing him all the best to book all these white collar criminals, looting this country!. Thanks Pgurus for taking the lead in informing people about this move! All Dharmic forces are with Swamy and Pgurus in this fight.
If the Government is corruption free, then it should not hesitate to give the details immediately that are permissible under the act and close the chapter and relieve Swamy from BJP, for creating unnecessary problems for functioning of Government. If not and if there is corruption in the matters asked for, the entire finance ministry should be cleaned up and fresh officers and minister should be appointed. This is the best chance for the Government to act and stabilize its functioning, in the welfare of the country.
This Hasmukh Adhia is a megalomaniac. He should be prosecuted for wrong deeds. Along with Jaitley, Adhia messed up GST and GSTN. Accepting Gold Biscuits for Diwali shows that he is typical corrupt Babu