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Delhi HC orders ED to attend to Vivo India's appeal against frozen bank accounts

The Delhi High Court ordered the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to decide by July 13 on the request by Vivo India.

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Ayushi Singh
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Vivo filed petition in delhi HC for blocked accounts by ED

The ED alleged that the purpose of these transactions was to conceal significant losses in Indian-incorporated businesses in order to avoid paying taxes.

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The Delhi High Court ordered the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to decide by July 13 on the request by Vivo India, Chinese smartphone company, for authorization to access its blocked bank accounts.

The corporation filed a complaint with the Delhi High Court challenging the decision issued by the federal investigation agency on July 5, freezing many of its bank accounts possessing almost Rs 250 crores in connection with an alleged money laundering investigation.

"In the interim, the court advises the respondent to attend to that representation in light of the authority to grant prior permission to deal with the seized property as is contemplated under section 17(1) A of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, stated Justice Yashwant Varma. "In the meantime, and bearing the financial conditions which are expressed in the petition and are also set out in a representation of July 7, this court directs the respondent to attend to that representation," he added.

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According to ED attorney Zoheb Hossain, Grand Prospect International Communication Private Limited (GPICPL) receives 1,400 crore of which nearly 1200 crore have been transferred to various bank accounts owned by the mobile carrier, claiming that GPICPL was registered with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) on the basis of forged and fake documents.

Additionally, he asserted that during the search, the employees tried to flee, hid the digital devices and were otherwise uncooperative.

The ED on Thursday reported that almost 50% of Vivo India's income, a total of Rs 62,476 crore had been sent outside India, largely to China. The ED alleged that the purpose of these transactions was to conceal significant losses in Indian-incorporated businesses in order to avoid paying taxes. As many as 23 related companies were identified by the agency.

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Sidharth Luthra, the attorney for Vivo, presented before the court that the firm's process has been impacted stating that, "Taxes are due from our end. TDS must be paid. Excise taxes must be paid. There are almost 9000 workers overall. The situation is urgent. A liability exists and it is increasing daily."

In connection with its investigation into Vivo and affiliated companies for possible money laundering, the central investigation agency conducted several nationwide raids on July 5 in various states under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The case will now further be heard on July 13.

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