Octogenarian Audit Advisor PD Kutne is no more

MUMBAI: PD Kunte, the tax expert of the seventies and eighties who devised tax planning for corporates, in an era when direct tax rates were above 70%, wealth tax at 5% and estate duty pegged as high as 85% in the country, passed away on Saturday morning.

He was the "go-to man" for many industrial houses including the Kalyani Group, Hero Group, Nirma Industries, Lalbhai Group and MRF Ltd. Kunte was thepioneer in tax planning in the country, helping corporates and big business houses to plan their economy.

Founder of the audit advisory firm - PD Kunte & Company that initially set Mumbai and eventually expanded to 11 cities including Delhi, Bengaluru, Pune, Ahmedabad and Dubai, breathed his last on Saturday, at the age of 82.

Kunte was involved in research activities relating to accounting and tax matters and promoted research activities that were carried out by the Bombay Chartered Accountants’ Society.

“He was always creative and innovative in his approach to solve the complex indirect taxation issues,” said Sanjay Lalbhai, chairman of Arvind Ltd - whose association with Kunte dates back to 1979.

“Very seldom, one comes across a person like Kunte whose focus was on providing quick solutions instead of worrying about a specific tax case,” recalls Lalbhai.

After losing his wife a few years back, Kunte devoted his life to philanthropy. He managed a blind girls institution in Goregaon, a northern western suburb in Mumbai.

Though he was very simple, he was a people's person says Sanjay Ashar, managing partner of Crawford Bayley & Co, a leading law firm, who has had various interactions with Kunte. “He loved being with people and helping them with their problems,” added Ashar.

He is revered by his rivals too. “I interacted with him on very few occasions,” says Dinesh Kanabar, Deputy CEO at KPMG. “However, his work is very well respected in industry and not surprisingly he went on to work for many large corporates,” added Kanabar.