Indian black money in Swiss banks down 80% under NDA: Government
New Delhi, July 24 : Indian black money deposits in Swiss banks went down by 34 per cent between 2016 and 2017 and by over 80 per cent since the BJP government came to power in 2014, an official statement said on Tuesday.
Referring to Swiss National Bank (SNB) data last month which showed that after falling for three years in succession, money parked by Indians in Swiss banks rose 50 per cent to Swiss francs 1.02 billion in 2017 over the previous year, a Finance Ministry release here said that a more reliable source of Indian black money stashed in Swiss banks is available from the data which the SNB collects jointly with the Bank for International Settlements.
"More often than not, the media reports have not taken account of the way the (SNB) figures have to be interpreted, which has resulted in misleading headlines and analyses. Moreover, it is frequently assumed that any assets held by Indian residents in Switzerland are undeclared (so-called 'Black Money')," it said.
"However, the cited figures that show an increase of 50 per cent in Swiss banks' total liabilities towards India also include non-deposit liabilities as well as business of Swiss branches located in India. To analyze Indian residents' deposits held in Switzerland, another data source should be used.
"This is the so-called 'locational banking statistics', which the SNB collects in collaboration with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). This data source shows that the liabilities in the form of loans and deposits of Swiss-domiciled banks towards Indian non-banks decreased by 44 per cent between 2016 and 2017," it added.
The Finance Ministry noted that BIS data showed "non-bank loans and deposits (which really constitute the individual and corporate deposits used as black money haven in the past and exclude inter-bank transactions) have fallen by 34.5 per cent in 2017 compared to 2016 ($524 million in 2017 versus $800 million in 2016)".
It said Swiss non-bank loans and deposits have reduced by a significant 80.2 per cent under the NDA government between 2013 and 2017.
"This broadly corresponds SNB reports which show an 82 per cent reduction in total Indian customer deposits in Switzerland since 2013, though BIS data is the right way to measure actual deposits from India in Switzerland," it added.
Speaking to reporters outside Parliament earlier on Tuesday, acting Finance Minister Piyush Goyal refuted the allegations made by Congress President Rahul Gandhi and other opposition members in this regard.
"The Swiss government has informed us that the news being spread by Rahul Gandhi is baseless and that the figures quoted by some political leaders are completely irrelevant to this issue," he said.
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DJ Black Coffee's event in Goa cancelled after NOC revoked on Good Friday
Panaji (PTI): The Goa leg of Grammy-winning South African DJ Black Coffee's India tour was cancelled at the last minute on Friday evening after authorities revoked the event's No Objection Certificate (NOC), a move intended to honour the solemnity of Good Friday.
Officials on Saturday cited the need to respect local sentiments and the religious significance of the day as the primary reason for withdrawing the permission previously granted to host the "Sunset-to-Night" event.
The opposition Congress demanded a probe by the Economic Offences Cell of the state against the organisers.
The revocation of permission by the Communidade of Anjuna, in whose land the event was scheduled to be hosted, followed an objection by locals and the Congress, citing the solemn occasion of Good Friday and the upcoming Easter Sunday.
Local police officials confirmed that the organisers of "Sunset to Night" have cancelled the event, leaving many revellers disappointed.
Sebastian D'Souza, an attorney of Communidade of Anjuna, in a letter addressed to organisers, stated that the NOC granted to them on March 4, 2026, to host the musical event on April 3 in survey number 206/1 of Anjuna village has been unanimously revoked by the managing committee.
D'Souza stated that the date coincides with Holy Week, particularly Good Friday.
"This has been decided in the interest of residents of Anjuna, Vagator and Chapora," the letter reads.
The Comunidade of Anjuna is a traditional, collective land-holding institution in North Goa, part of the twelve comunidades of Bardez.
A huge crowd assembled outside the venue of the programme on Friday night as the word spread about the cancellation.
Several netizens posted reels on social media claiming they were informed about the cancellation at the last minute.
Earlier, the Congress had objected to hosting such an event on the sacred occasion of Good Friday, calling it "deeply insensitive and unacceptable."
"Your event, @Paradoxindia_, in Goa on the sacred occasion of Good Friday is deeply insensitive and unacceptable. @RealBlackCoffee , this is not just about music- it is about respecting faith. By going ahead with a techno show on a day of mourning for Christians, you have hurt religious sentiments not just in Goa, but across the world," Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President Amit Patkar had written on X.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, Patkar said that the state Congress would file a complaint with the Economic Offences Cell (EOC) against the organisers for allegedly selling tickets online without obtaining necessary permissions from authorities such as the Goa Pollution Control Board and the Fire and Emergency Services.
The event organisers could not be contacted immediately for their comment on the Congress leader's claim.
While at least 3,000 people had arrived in Goa to attend the event, the access road to the venue was not wide enough for Fire and Emergency Services vehicles to reach, Patkar claimed.
