Panama tax evasion case: Amitabh Bachchan denies knowledge of offshore firms

After his name was revealed to be among those of 500 Indians in connection with the Panama Papers leak, actor Amitabh Bachchan has denied any knowledge of the case. In a statement released through his PR firm on Tuesday, Bachchan categorically denied having any knowledge of the companies he had been linked to. He further said that it was possible his name had been misused. [caption id=“attachment_2713926” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Amitabh Bachchan[/caption] “I do not know any of the companies referred to by Indian Express — Sea Bulk Shipping Company Ltd, Lady Shipping Ltd, Treasure Shipping Ltd, and Tramp Shipping Ltd. I have never been a director of any of the above stated companies. It is possible that my name has been misused,” Bachchan said. He also asserted that he had paid all the taxes that he was eligible to. “I have paid all my taxes including on monies spent by me overseas,” Bachchan said in his statement. “Monies that I have remitted overseas have been in compliance with law, including remittances through LRS, after paying Indian taxes. In any event the news report in Indian Express does not even suggest any illegality on my part.”

He also claimed that even the news report had not suggested any wrongdoing on his part. The Indian Express carried a report on Monday based on leaked documents of a Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca which is said to feature links of over 500 Indians to firms and accounts in offshore tax havens. “I have paid all my taxes including on monies spent by me overseas. Monies that I have remitted overseas have been in compliance with law, including remittances through Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS), after paying Indian taxes. In any event the news report in Indian Express does not even suggest any illegality on my part,” his statement read. The names of his daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai, her parents and brother also figured in the leaked documents as being directors in a firm in the British Virgin Islands. The newspaper quoted her media adviser Archana Sadanand, who raised questions about the International Consortium of Investigating Journalists and said all the information the paper had was totally untrue and false. The Indian Express report on the Panama Papers had stated that Bachchan was the director of at least four offshore shipping companies.