Hasan Ali likely to appear before ED on March 7

Pune-based real estate consultant and stud farm owner Hasan Ali Khan, who is alleged to have stashed away over $8 billion in Swiss banks, is likely to appear before the Enforcement Directorate on March 7, sources said today.

The agency recently sent a notice to Khan, who is under investigation for money laundering and for allegedly transferring cash/valuable assets outside the country by unlawful means with the help of foreign nationals.

Khan had appeared before I-T authorities here on February 18 apparently in connection with notices issued to him on December 31, 2008, over alleged huge tax evasions following undisclosed funds in several foreign bank accounts, including $8 billion in an account in the Zurich branch of UBS.

However, UBS had denied any business relationship with Khan.

Tax enforcement agencies are now trying to locate properties of Khan abroad which could be attached or auctioned to extract from him a huge tax liability to the tune of Rs 40,000 crore.

Earlier, in January 2007, the I-T department had raided Khan's residence at Koregaon Park in Pune and had seized documents that showed that he had $8.04 billion in a UBS account in Zurich.

The raid followed a revelation that Khan had allegedly concealed his income and not filed income tax returns since 1999. The department had also raided his properties in Mumbai and Hyderabad.