'She got me through the worst ordeal of my life': Chennai Six former British soldier reveals he found love while jailed in India for four years on firearms charges as he arrives home

• Nick Dunn, from Ashington, touched down at Newcastle Airport at 11.30am
• He embraced relieved family members and said he was 'on cloud nine'
• Mr Dunn met Monalisa Das in a bar and the couple fell in love before his sentence
• Billy Irving was first of the Chennai Six to arrive back in UK on Wednesday
• Six jailed for unlicensed firearms and ammunition but sentences overturned

By Isobel Frodsham and Rory Tingle For Mailonline

PUBLISHED: 11:47 GMT, 7 December 2017 | UPDATED: 23:41 GMT, 7 December 2017

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Former British soldier Nick Dunn - one of the so-called Chennai Six - has revealed he found love while facing a trial in India.

Mr Dunn, Mr Dunn, from Ashington, Northumberland, has spoken about his relationship with girlfriend Monalisa Das after touching down at Newcastle Aiport this morning.

Along with five other British men, Mr Dunn had been a guard on a ship to combat piracy in the Indian Ocean, but were jailed in October 2013 after being charged with carrying unlicensed firearms and ammunition.

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Former British soldier Nick Dunn - one of the so-called Chennai Six - has revealed he found love while jailed in India for four years

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Mr Dunn, from Ashington, touched down at Newcastle Airport at around 11.30 this morning, where he greeted his family

But he said he managed to survive the ordeal thanks to the support from his family and Ms Das.

The pair met while Mr Dunn was having a drink in a bar while on bail and she asked him about his tattoos.

Speaking to the MailOnline, he said: 'We had a normal relationship to begin with, she was lovely. We went to bars and restaurants like any normal couple. We had a lot of fun together.

'I told her all about my situation and she was very understanding.

'Once I was locked up again it was hard for us, but it meant the world to me that I had someone there in the country rooting for me. She got me through the very worst of times.

'She visited me religiously during visiting hours which were every fortnight, bringing all my post with her.

'That in itself was a great help, vital really, as the Indian postal system is not very good, and it meant I could keep in contact with everyone I needed to.'

Mr Dunn spent time with Ms Das after his release from prison last week following a successful appeal.

But yesterday the pair were forced to say goodbye to each other at Chennai International Airport.

Mr Dunn added: 'It was very emotional. As I was leaving India Monalisa was getting very upset.

'I told her that now I am free we will be able to speak to each other all day, every day, if we want to, on Skype but I know it is the physical contact that she wants.

'She always knew this day would come, but it's been hard. It was always my prerogative to come home, and she know that, but that doesn't make it any easier.

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Speaking to the MailOnline, he said: 'We had a normal relationship to begin with, she was lovely. We went to bars and restaurants like any normal couple. We had a lot of fun together'

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Dozens of cheering supporters were there to greet him as he walked into the terminal wearing a bright red jacket

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Speaking to reporters, he said: 'I'm overwhelmed, staggered, on cloud nine - I'm the happiest man alive'

'It's great that I am home, but it's also sad. This is where is all begins in terms of a long distance relationship.

'It's early days and I do not know what is going to happen yet. Her moving over here would be a big decision.

'She has met my family and they all love her to bits. I have spoken to her dad and he wants me to go to Assam where she is from to meet the family. In some ways, it is up to him what happens.

'There are some cultural differences.'

Since landing in Newcastle today Mr Dunn has sipped champagne and visited McDonald's where he had an extra large Big Mac meal.

He spent his afternoon visiting friends and family and by 9pm he still had not managed to have a bath - one of the things he had most been looking forward to.

He said: 'When I was on bail I went to fast food places like KFC and Burger King, but they are not as nice as the UK versions. It was good to have a McDonald's.

'I am still on cloud nine. It has not sunk in. I feel like I am waiting to come down to earth.

'I don't know what my plans are yet, but I will stay in the country. It wouldn't be fair to leave and put my family through that again.

'I wouldn't have got through this without my sister Lisa who does not know the meaning of giving up.

'I still haven't had a bath. I can't wait.' 

Their company AdvanFort has always insisted the men were protecting other ships from pirate attacks and had done nothing wrong.

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But John Armstrong, 30, of Wigton, Cumbria, Ray Tindall, 42, of Chester, Billy Irving, 37, of Oban, Scotland, Paul Towers, 54, of Pocklington, East Yorkshire and Nicholas Simpson, 47, of Catterick, North Yorkshire were all jailed for the offences.

There were a series of appeals but none were successful until on November 27 a judge ruled they had been acquitted and were to be freed.

They were apprehended in 2013 after the Indian coastguard boarded their vessel, the MV Seaman Guard Ohio, and accused them of taking a huge arsenal of weaponry into territorial waters.

Mr Dunn said: 'It was quite hard at times. You have just got to knuckle down and get yourself into a routine and keep a good mental state, don't let stuff get to you.

'You're mixing with a different culture and a different way of life. The cell was clean but the communal toilets were disgusting. This is the best thing ever, to finally be back home with my family.'

Mr Dunn's sister Lisa, 37, campaigned tirelessly for his release since his ordeal first began in 2013.

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 Mr Dunn, one of the so-called Chennai Six, was jailed in India for weapons charges, which have since been dismissed

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It follows the arrival of Billy Irving on Wednesday, who was the first of the Chennai Six to land back in the UK when he arrived at Glasgow Airport

Billy Irving was the first of the Chennai Six to land back in the UK and arrived at Glasgow Airport on Wednesday.

After being greeted by family he spoke briefly to reporters, saying: 'It feels excellent to be home.' 

The other men are also expected to arrive in the UK on Thursday.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson previously said: 'It is wonderful news that the men are returning to the UK.

'The Foreign Office has worked unstintingly on this case, lobbying on the men's behalf, visiting them in prison, updating their families and maintaining close contact with their legal team.

'I pay tribute to those who have campaigned for the men, who will be delighted to see them return home after being separated for so long.' 

Who are the Chennai six?

The six British men had been guards on a ship to combat piracy in the Indian Ocean but were jailed in October 2013 after being charged with carrying unlicensed firearms and ammunition.

Indian authorities said their weapons had not been properly declared. The group has always denied the charges, which were initially quashed but later reinstated.

They were sentenced to five years in 2016 and were being held in the prison in Chennai, formerly known as Madras. After an appeal, all charges were dropped.

The other men are Nick Dunn, 31, of Ashington, Northumberland, John Armstrong, 30, of Wigton, Cumbria, Nicholas Simpson, 47, of Catterick, North Yorkshire, Ray Tindall, 42, of Chester, and Paul Towers, 54, of Pocklington, East Yorkshire.

After years of campaigning, they won an appeal against their convictions last week and were allowed to leave India.  

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5155007/Nick-Dunn-second-Chennai-Six-return-home.html#ixzz50dXtvDuZ
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Financial instruments and taxability It is pertinent to choose the right mix of financial instruments to suit investment goals

Financial instruments are monetary contracts created as a financial asset of one entity and a financial liability of the other. There are various forms of financial instruments available for investors to optimize returns, and it is pertinent to choose the right mix of financial instruments to suit investment goals.

Broadly, financial instruments are characterized by investors based on assets or the nature of business. Instruments are categorized by “asset class” depending on whether they are equity-based (reflecting ownership of issuing entity) or debt-based (reflecting a loan the investor has made to the issuing entity). Typical forms of financial instruments are:

Equity: Investments that grant ownership in a joint stock company for return on investment (RoI). Voting rights may be traded on stock exchanges.

Debt: A contract that enables the issuing party to raise funds by promising to repay the lender as per the terms of a contract. Common forms of debt instruments include notes, bonds, debentures, certificates, or other agreements between a lender and a borrower. Debenture is a debt instrument that may or may not have physical assets or collateral. Bonds are fixed income instruments issued by parties to raise capital. Sovereign bonds carry low risk with low returns, compared with corporate bonds that offer better returns with potential risk.

Convertible or Mezz finance: Convertibles are hybrid instruments that offer characteristics of both debt and equities. Convertibles are most often associated with convertible debentures/bonds, which allow debt holders to convert their credit position into equity at an agreed price.

Futures and options: Derivatives are financial contracts that derive value from the underlying assets. Worldwide, the derivative instruments used are futures and options. The fundamental difference between the two are in the obligations they put on the buyers and sellers.

1. Futures contracts grant rights with obligations to the traders with the open position settled on maturity.

2. Option contracts grant buyers the right but not the obligation. It permits the buyer an option to buy call or put, where the seller of the option has an obligation to comply with the contract.

Tax attributes of financial instruments in India

Exit or disposal of instruments: Taxability of instruments are based on various factors under Indian domestic tax laws. However, characterization of gains from exit of such instruments plays a vital role in determining income tax liability.

Profits arising from the instruments held with the intention of business or stock are treated as business income, subject to a maximum base tax rate of 30%/40%. Instruments held for investment purpose would qualify as capital assets, and sale thereof would constitute transfer of capital asset, resulting in capital gains tax liability.

Concessional rate of capital gains tax at 20%/10% may be applicable, depending on the period of holding ranging from 12-to-36 months. In case of listed securities where securities transaction tax is paid, no capital gains tax is payable in India.

Conversions/repayment of debt not a transfer: Ideally, Mezz instruments have dual characteristics where the hybrid instrument is converted from debt to equity or permissible instruments. The event of conversion would trigger transfer of asset. Under Indian domestic laws, conversion of specific instruments such as convertible debenture or preference shares to equity is tax-neutral. Repayment of debt on a principal to principal basis would not have tax consequences.

Others: Settlement of derivatives with underlying asset is treated as rights for capital gains tax purposes. Rights associated to business where the contract for purchase or sale is settled otherwise than by actual delivery may be considered as business income. Importantly, income of non-residents is chargeable to tax in India or subject to the tax treaty entered between the country, whichever is more beneficial.

Tax attributes of financial instruments in Singapore

Singapore taxes income on a quasi-territorial basis, i.e. companies are taxed on all income accrued or derived from Singapore. Foreign income is taxable that is remitted or deemed remitted into Singapore. Normally, gains arising on disposal of investments are not subject to tax in Singapore, subject to satisfaction of the prescribed conditions. In order to provide certainty, Singapore tax laws settled the issue of capital gains characterization under the 20%-24 months’ safe harbor rule for disposal of equity investments.

Tax treaty benefit is available to the investors who are non-resident in Singapore furnishing a certificate of residence. Further, the Singapore Income-tax Act provides Singapore taxpayer relief against double taxation where Singapore has signed income-tax treaties with the countries.

At the outset, appropriate classification of a financial instrument like equity or combination of both, is an essential factor to obtain clarity from tax, accounting and realization perspective.

FAQs

1. What is the character of income when convertible or Mezz instruments are transferred and its tax treatment?

Character of income arising from the transfer of convertibles is retained as capital gains on instruments transferred prior to the conversion. Appreciation of income from the convertible instrument transaction cannot be re-characterized as interest/dividend merely because the financial instrument has dual nature.

2.In case of convertibles held by Singapore investors, would the 20%-24 months’ safe harbor rule apply under Singapore tax laws, especially where the equity instrument is not clearly held for over 24 months?

The 2012 budget, in order to grant certainty to the taxpayer, introduced that gains or profits arising from disposal of ordinary shares in another company that are legally and beneficially owned by the divesting company immediately before the disposal, are sold during the specified period held as share for a continuous period of 24 months with at least 20% holding in the investee company, can access the relaxed provision.

Safe harbor rules obligate the taxpayers claiming the safe harbor provision to furnish information and supporting documents as required by tax authorities. Technically, the convertible instruments are not covered/specifically included in the safe harbor rule where claim of such benefit will have to be discussed with the comptroller before claiming the beneficial provision.

3. Would disposal of instruments by Singapore investors be eligible for tax treaty benefits in India?

Under the India-Singapore tax treaty, gains arising from alienation/transfer of instruments held in the Indian company are eligible for the benefits under Article 13 read with the March 2017 amendment to the India-Singapore tax treaty including the limitation of benefit clause. However, pursuant to the introduction of general anti-avoidance rule from April 2017 in India and the prevailing anti-avoidance rule under Singapore tax laws, sale transaction could be subject to examination of the anti-avoidance principles, due to lack of commercial rationale and determine the primary purpose test to be entitled for benefit under the applicable tax treaty.

Shailendra Sharma contributed to this article.

Vikas Vasal, national leader tax–Grant Thornton India LLP

Send in your queries to vikas.vasal@in.gt.com

First Published: Fri, Dec 08 2017. 04 59 AM IST livemint

End of ageing Longer lives are not necessarily happier

The advances in science have brought us to the point where scientists now foresee a future where ageing can be slowed. Recently, biomedical gerontologist Aubrey de Grey explained that he believes the first person who will live to be 1,000 has already been born, and we will solve this “ageing problem” within 20 years.

In one sense, this is great news. Millions of people die due to ageing-induced illnesses, and while this research will not overcome death’s inevitability, it will delay it considerably for many people.

But such research also raises several ethical dilemmas: until the technology becomes accessible to the poor, the rich will extend their already higher life expectancy even longer. Longer lives are not necessarily happier. How will perceptions about suicide change? Every individual’s formative years are in their youth. How will much older and younger generations, and their incoherent ideas, coexist and who will govern? These are important questions for society about which world leaders will have to contemplate in a not-so-distant future.

First Published: Fri, Dec 08 2017. 05 10 AM IST livemint

Why Donald Trump is right on Jerusalem Donald Trump recognizing Jerusalem as capital of Israel simply acknowledges reality, buries the false shibboleths of the old peace process, and kick-starts a new approach

The hysteria surrounding the US recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is based on the fact that too much store is laid on Donald Trump-baiting, not enough attention is paid to what he said. Moreover, there is a lot of ignorance of history. As things stand, President Trump’s announcement simply acknowledges reality, buries the false shibboleths of the old peace process, and kick-starts a new approach, exactly as he claimed.

The first thing to note here is that the land allocated for the future US embassy building in Jerusalem is in West Jerusalem. And Israeli control over West Jerusalem was sanctified first by the 1949 armistice agreement and then formalized in 1967, thereby forming the baseline for the Oslo accords and the UN resolutions. This line demarcates the “State of Israel”, recognition of which was the precondition to the Israeli-Palestinian accords. Israeli control over West Jerusalem, therefore, is not disputed—at least not by the Palestinian Authority or by the countries that recognize and maintain diplomatic relations with Israel.

The US consulate in the city, on the other hand, straddles this imaginary 1949 line, being half in West Jerusalem and half in an area that was a demilitarized zone. It was in 2010, under president Barack Obama, that the building was shifted from its previous location in East Jerusalem to its present position. Thus, the belief that setting up an embassy in West Jerusalem sanctifies the Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem (which is not internationally recognized) is simply factually incorrect, as the presence of the previous consulate would have already conferred such legitimacy, as would the current consulate. At any rate, President Trump’s announcement makes it clear that the US is “not taking a position of any final status issues, including the specific boundaries of the Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem or the resolution of contested borders”.

Second, we have to understand that the so-called peace process to which everyone seems so attached has been effectively dead ever since the late Yasser Arafat, the then president of the Palestinian Authority, rejected the proposed final settlement at the Camp David Summit in July 2000. That deal offered him 95% of the West Bank, all of Gaza, compensation in lieu of the right of return of the Palestinian diaspora, and, most importantly East Jerusalem.

Arafat decided that the best way to get an even better deal was to stoke violence, triggering the second intifada in September of that same year, ostensibly to protest Ariel Sharon’s visit to the Al-Aqsa mosque. What is important about this point is that it highlights each side’s approach to negotiations—but also the sheer futility of land for peace—trading tangible land in return for intangible peace.

Israel, for its part, uses a mix of carrot and stick. The carrots are the repeated offer of land transfer that happened for much of the 1990s, while the sticks have been the construction of settlements. The message it conveys to the Palestinians is, “take what you are offered now, or else we will keep nibbling away at your territory, create new ground realities and your slice of the land pie will only continue to shrink”.

When agreement has been reached in the past, Israel has demonstrated a willingness to live up to its side of the bargain. For example, the agreement ending the second intifada in 2005 was followed by the total withdrawal of Israel, settlements, settlers, troops and all, from the Gaza strip.

On the Palestinian side, there is no real negotiating tactic, merely failure-compensation to mask monumental corruption and incompetence. For much of his life, Arafat failed to control terrorists on his side who went on to kill Israelis, frequently encouraging them through acts of commission and omission and the rhetoric of hate, saying one thing in English and quite the other in Arabic. For example, as late as 18 August 2011, the Palestinian ambassador to India, Adli Sadeq, was praising a terror attack in Eilat that killed six civilians and injured 30 as a “quality operation that will be difficult to repeat”, referring to the perpetrators as “martyrs”.

A pervasive view in the West Bank, including among Palestinian Authority officials, is that in a few years they will overtake the Jews demographically and then demand equal rights in a unified state. This wishful thinking is the closest the Palestinian state has to a coherent policy—negating the two-state solution (which they espouse publicly but reject privately, not unlike extremist Jews) and believing rather delusionally that Israel will agree to reverse the partition of Palestine.

What Trump’s announcement has done is fire a warning shot. The move of the embassy to Jerusalem carries with it the implicit threat that the US will either sanctify or reject Israeli control of East Jerusalem. On the one hand, this conveys to the Palestinian Authority that it must reach a settlement during Trump’s presidency. On the other, it is equally a warning to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose core constituency would consider it unthinkable to give up the occupied territories. While some commentators, without any proof or causal linkages, will attribute future acts of violence and terror to this move, the inescapable conclusion remains that this is a pragmatic step in the right direction.

Abhijit Iyer-Mitra is senior fellow at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies.

Comments are welcome at theirview@livemint.com

First Published: Thu, Dec 07 2017. 11 13 PM IST

Bitcoin price tops $17,000, hack raises concerns ahead of US trading As of 11.15 am EST, bitcoin was valued at $17,482, according to Coinbase. At the start of the year, one bitcoin was worth less than $1,000

Tokyo: Bitcoin surged past $17,000 Thursday as the frenzy surrounding the cryptocurrency escalated just days before it starts trading on major US exchanges. Bitcoin has gained more than $5,000 in just the past two days.

At the same time, there are fresh concerns about the security of bitcoin and other virtual currencies after NiceHash, a company that mines bitcoins on behalf of customers, said it is investigating a breach that may have resulted in the theft of about $70 million worth of bitcoin.

Research company Coindesk said that a wallet address referred to by NiceHash users indicates that about 4,700 bitcoins had been stolen. NiceHash said it will stop operating for 24 hours while it verifies how many bitcoins were taken. Wallet is a nickname for an online account.

As of 11.15am EST, bitcoin was valued at $17,482, according to Coinbase, the largest bitcoin exchange. At the start of the year, one bitcoin was worth less than $1,000.

The surge in the bitcoin price and the hack of NiceHash occurred just as the trading community prepares for bitcoin to start trading on two established US exchanges. Futures for bitcoin will start trading on the Chicago Board Options Exchange on Sunday evening and on crosstown rival CME Group’s platforms later in the month.

That has increased the sense among some investors that bitcoin is gaining in mainstream legitimacy after several countries, like China, tried to stifle the virtual currency.

Bitcoin is the world’s most popular digital currency. Such currencies, also called cryptocurrencies, are not tied to a bank or government and allow users to spend money anonymously. They are basically lines of computer code that are digitally signed each time they are traded.

A debate is raging on the merits of such currencies. Some say they serve merely to facilitate money laundering and illicit, anonymous payments. Others say they can be helpful methods of payment, such as in crisis situations where national currencies have collapsed.

Miners of bitcoins and other digital currencies help keep the systems honest by having their computers keep a global running tally of transactions. That prevents cheaters from spending the same digital coin twice.

Online security is a vital concern for such dealings.

In Japan, following the failure of a bitcoin exchange called Mt. Gox, new laws were enacted to regulate bitcoin and other virtual currencies. Mt. Gox shut down in February 2014, saying it lost about 850,000 bitcoins, possibly to hackers.

NiceHash did not respond to an emailed request for more details about the breach.

“The incident has been reported to the relevant authorities and law enforcement and we are cooperating with them as a matter of urgency,” it said in a statement, where it also urged users to change their online passwords.

Slovenian police are investigating the case together with authorities in other states, spokesman Bostjan Lindav said, without providing details. AP

First Published: Thu, Dec 07 2017. 10 44 AM IST

Strong tremors felt in Delhi-NCR

IANS|

Updated: Dec 06, 2017, 09.51 PM IST

NEW DELHI: Tremors were felt in Delhi and NCR at around 8.45 p.m. on Wednesday that lasted for a few seconds following a moderate earthquake in Uttarakhand. 

According to the Centre for Seismology, an earthquake of 5.5 magnitude was reported in Rudraprayag in Uttarakhand. 

"The epicentre is in Uttarakhand, the tremors felt in Delhi and NCR are the impulses," an official at Centre for Seismology, India Meteorological Department (IMD), told IANS. 

The epicentre of the quake was at 30 km depth, and the tremor is considered moderate. This is the second earthquake in Uttarakhand in the past 24 hours. On Tuesday, a 3.3 magnitude quake was reported in the state. 

Read more at:
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/61951338.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Ratan Tata and N Chandrasekaran roll out the first batch of Tata Tigor EVs from Sanand factory

By Ketan Thakkar ET bureau

MUMBAI: The Tata Motors chairman N Chandrasekaran and Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata, on Wednesday, rolled out the first batch of Tigor EV out of Tata Motors' Sanand factory in Gujarat. 

Tata Motors had qualified as L1 bidder and won the tender of 10,000 electric cars floated by Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) in September 2017. For phase 1, Tata Motors is required to deliver 250 Tigor EVs, for which it has received a LoA. For an additional 100 cars, the LoA is expected to be issued shortly by EESL. 

N Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata group said this occasion is a significant milestone for Tata Motors and a proud moment for the entire team. "As we work together to build the future of e-mobility in India, I am confident that our customers will respond very favourably to this electric model,” added Chandrasekaran. 

The electric drive systems for this order have been developed and supplied by Electra EV – a company established to develop and supply electric drive systems for the automotive sector, the company said in a statement. 

According to Guenter Butschek, CEO & MD, Tata Motors said this tender has effectively paved way for connecting our aspirations in the e-mobility space with the vision of the Government. “With Tigor EV, we have begun our journey in boosting e-mobility and offering a full range of electric vehicles to the Indian customers," added Butschek. 

Tata Motors is committed to the Government’s vision for electric vehicles by 2030 and will work in a collaborative manner to facilitate faster adoption of electric vehicles and to build a sustainable future for India, the company said. 

Read more at:
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/61946596.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

GST NOTE ON APPLICABILITY OF GST ON GOODS TRANSFERRED/SOLD FROM CUSTOM BONDED WAREHOUSE

GST EDUCATION

On 24th November, 2017, CBEC issued circular no. 46/2017-Customs clarifying issues regarding levy of IGST on goods sold from custom bonded warehouse. This circular has discussed the provisions of section 14 of Customs Act, 1962 regarding the valuation of imported goods. This section states that the value of goods on which custom duty will be payable will be the value at the time of import i.e. at the time of filing of the into-bond Bill of Entry. Any costs incurred after the import of goods cannot be added to the value of the goods, for the purpose of levy of duties of customs at the stage of ex-bonding. Therefore, duties of customs (BCD + IGST) shall be paid on the imported goods at the stage of ex- bonding as per this section 14. For eg. if the value of goods imported by A is Rs. 5 lacs, rate of custom duty is 10% & rate of IGST is 18%; the amount of custom duty and IGST will be calculated as follows:-

Value of imported goods 5,00,000
Custom duty @ 10% 50,000
5,50,000
IGST @ 18% 99,000
Total 6,49,000

As per clarification given in this circular, total duty & tax payment (50,000 + 99,000) = Rs. 1,49,000/- will be deferred and will be payable at the time of ex-bonding of imported goods.

It has also been clarified that under IGST Act, 2017, supply of imported goods which takes place before they cross the customs frontiers of India, shall be treated as an inter-State supply on which IGST is applicable under section 7(2) of the Act. Thus, if the goods are sold to some other person, such transaction of sale/transfer will be subject to IGST under the IGST Act. The value of such supply shall be determined as per section 15 of the CGST Act read with section 20 of the IGST Act and the rules made there under, without prejudice to the fact that the liability of import duty (which includes BCD and applicable IGST payable under the Customs Tariff Act) has also arisen and will be collected at the ex-bond stage.

Suppose, in the above referred example, the goods are sold by A to B at Rs. 10,00,000/-. In such a case, IGST will be payable by A as follows:-

Value of sale 10,00,000
IGST @ 18% 1,80,000
11,80,000

A will issue GST invoice for this value and IGST payable on the same. The credit of IGST of Rs. 1,80,000/- will be receivable by B on this invoice issued by A.

In the above case, the goods are already sold by A to B while the goods were lying at warehouse. Therefore, at the time of ex-bonding; the bill of entry will be filed by B and total tax amounting to Rs. 1,49,000/- will be payable by him to Government exchequer. The credit of IGST of Rs. 99,000/- as involved in the bill of entry will also be receivable by B on the basis of bill of entry. Therefore, in this case, credit of IGST paid at both the times, i.e. Rs. 2,48,000/- (Rs. 99,000/- + Rs. 1,49,000/-) will be available to B.

Suppose B further sells these goods at Rs. 12,00,000/-. The IGST at 18%, i.e. Rs. 2,16,000/- will be payable by him. In the given case, the credit available is Rs. 2,48,000/-; therefore, the entire IGST of Rs. 2,16,000/- can be paid from the credit available with him. Even after entirely using the credit, the amount of Rs. 32,000/- will be left surplus with B. This will happen in every similar case. Therefore, the accumulated credit will increase with each and every transaction. In this case, if B is trader, he will not be able to utilize the credit in any case. Also, refund of unutilized credit will not be available to him as there is neither any export nor it is the case of inverted tax structure. Thus, this clarification will result into extinguishing the practice of in-bond sale of goods. In the given situation, B will always buy the goods after the ex-bonding as in that case A will be required to pay IGST once and the same will be charged from B. B will avail its credit and will use the same at the time of paying the tax on sale made by him.

The content of this GST update is for educational purpose only and not intended for solicitation.

Contributed by P.jain.

News Live: Own a car? You may soon have to forgo LPG subsidy This blog will keep track of key global and local developments impacting business and markets through the day. Important local and global political developments will also find resonance here.

Own a car? You may soon have to forgo LPG subsidy

If you own a car, you might soon have to forgo the subsidy on your LPG cylinders, reports Business Standard. By eliminating 36 million fake connections through Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL), the government has saved nearly Rs 30,000 crore of cooking gas subsidy. Now, it is planning to strike car owners off the subsidy list.

Sources in the government said the idea was in its initial stage. The government had collected registration details of cars from regional transport offices (RTO) in a few districts. If it worked out, there could be huge savings on subsidy. A lot of people who have two or three cars were also taking subsidy at present.

The government had last year excluded those with an annual income of more than Rs 10 lakh from LPG subsidy. For deciding on the income cap, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas had taken details of LPG customers from the Income Tax Department. This included PAN, residential address, and mobile number.

Why is marijuana illegal in India? Why can't it be made legal?

Marijuana, Ganja, or weed whatever you may call it was actually legal till 1985 in India. All cannabis derivatives - marijuana (grass or ganja), hashish (charas) and bhang - were legally sold in this country. As a matter of fact, most state governments had their own retail shops to sell these drugs. India has known, consumed and celebrated ganja, charas and bhang for millennium.

Then came the goddamn NDPS which was formed by Rajiv Gandhi government, which clubbed these holy plants with hardcore drugs like smack, cocaine, heroine etc...It was a very poor law.

Note: the NDPS act was passed on as a result of enacted pressure form the United States. LOL! How they changed with almost 20+ states legalizing cannabis but India is still under pressure thought of what to do. 

To be honest its illegal, but tolerated in and around India. And a few states like West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa Tripura, and the North East have their own laws allowing cannabis. Varanasi the holy grail for Bhang! 

See we are changing and hopefully the next few years to come, NDPS act should be amended and god given plants should be made legal.

Source{-Quora -Ashwin Niwhsa

Deregistered companies shifted Rs 21,000 crore during note ban

By Ruchika Chitravanshi

NEW DELHI: The government has found that over Rs 21,000 crore was moved in and out of bank accounts during demonetisation by some of the companies that have been deregistered. The ongoing crackdown on shell companies has revealed that about 62,300 companies with 88,000 bank accounts had an unusual spike in transactions during the demonetisation period, as per data shared by banks. 

All of these accounts belong to companies struck off the registrar of companies list after they were were found inactive for over two years or had defaulted on regulatory compliance. Corporate affairs ministry is still awaiting data on the remaining 1.6 lakh companies from the banks. “We have asked the department of financial services to take action against the banks that have not shared the information on the bank account transactions of the struck off companies...The whole picture will be revealed only after complete data is made known to us,” a senior official said. 

The government has shared information of such companies with the enforcement authorities including Central Board of Direct Taxes, Financial Intelligence Unit and Reserve Bank of India for further action. The government has also disqualified over 3 lakh directors of companies that failed to file financial statements and/or annual returns for the three years ended March 2016. 

“These companies did not establish any activity while they were existing…Suddenly huge transactions after demonetisation raises suspicion about the source of these funds,” the senior official added. 

A special task force constituted by the Prime Minister’s Office led jointly by the revenue secretary and the corporate affairs secretary has met five times and initiated action against defaulting firms. The Serious Fraud Investigation Office has been directed to arrest “any person believed to be guilty of any fraud punishable under the Act”. Section 477 of the Companies Act defines fraud and prescribes punishment including imprisonment up to 10 years. 

The finance ministry has been asked to include such fraud as a scheduled offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. 

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