Punjab and Haryana High Court in the Amarinder Singh case rules ED can access French-sourced tax records, upholding lower court orders and reinforcing the investigation under FEMA and Income Tax laws.
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Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court, on September 3, 2025, delivered an important ruling in the matter of Amarinder Singh v Income Tax Department and Another. Justice Tribhuvan Dahiya upheld lower court orders that permitted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to access information originally shared by the French government with India’s Income Tax (IT) Department.
Background of the Case
The IT Department filed complaints in 2016 against former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh and his son Raninder Singh. Alleged undisclosed foreign assets and bank accounts linked to entities in Switzerland and Dubai.
The information was shared by French authorities under the 1994 Indo-French Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA), particularly Article 28 on confidentiality.
While the IT Department prosecuted the case under the Income Tax Act and IPC, the ED launched a parallel probe under FEMA, 1999, seeking access to the same documents filed before the trial court.
Petitioners’ Objections
Amarinder and Raninder Singh challenged the orders of the Magistrate and Revisional Court, arguing:
- The ED was a stranger to IT proceedings.
- Disclosure of confidential information from France would breach Article 28 of the Indo-French DTAA.
- The IT Department could not indirectly share data with ED by way of court records.
Court’s Findings
Justice Dahiya rejected these objections, holding:
- No bar exists on ED accessing documents already placed on the judicial record.
- If disclosure violates the treaty, only the IT Department (as the recipient authority) can object—not the Singhs.
- Article 28 permits sharing with courts and state authorities, and similar provisions had been interpreted by the Supreme Court in the Ram Jethmalani case.
- The ED, being an investigative organ of the State, was not seeking the data for public dissemination but for investigation under FEMA.
The High Court dismissed the petitions and confirmed:
- ED may inspect and access records filed by the IT Department before the Magistrate.
- However, the information cannot be made public unless permitted by law.
Appearance:
For Amarinder Sing and Raninder Singh: Advocates Gurmohan Singh Bedi, Amandeep S Talwar, Pawandeep Singh, Anand V Khanna and Ambika Bedi
For ED and IT Department: Special Counsel Zoheb Hossain, Senior Panel Counsel Lokesh Narang and Advocate Vipul Joshi.
Case Title:
Amarinder Singh v Income Tax Department and Another
CRM-M-37200-2021
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