Blackmoney: Furnish documents, information to petitioners, says Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today directed the Centre to handover within three days all documents and information collected by it in its probe in the cases of alleged stashing of black money in LST bank in Liechtenstein, Germany, to noted jurist Rama Jethmalani and others who raised the issue before it.

"Since the investigation is complete into the aforesaid mentioned cases, now we once again direct Union of India to furnish the documents and information which is kept in the covers (sealed) to petitioners within three days from today," a bench comprising justices H L Dattu, Ranjana Prakash Desai and M B Lokur said.

The apex court also appointed its retired judges M B Shah as the Chairman and Arijit Pasayat as the Vice Chairman of the Special Investigating Team (SIT) for providing guidance and direction in the investigation of all cases of black money in the country and abroad.

Justice Shah, who was earlier appointed as Vice Chairman by July 4, 2011 order will take place of former apex court judge B P Jeevan Reddy who expressed his inability to continue as Chairman due to personal reasons.

The bench directed the Centre to issue notification regarding their appointment within three weeks.

The Centre had earlier revealed names of 18 persons after resisting for around three years despite the apex court order passed in 2011.

It had also placed before the apex court in a sealed envelope the names of other individulas with respect of eight other cases in which it found no evidence of tax evasion.

Jethmalani had sought directions to the government "to file list of names of those having accounts in Liechtenstein Bank with respect of whom investigations have been concluded, either partially or wholly.