Court refuses to allow Dabur's Burman to go abroad

Pradip Burman, one of the Dabur India promoters whose name has cropped up in the list given by the Centre to the Supreme Court on the blackmoney issue, was today denied permission to go abroad for family function by a Delhi court which said there was no justifiable ground for it.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Devendra Kumar Sharma dismissed Burman's application seeking permission to go to Hong Kong, saying there was nothing on record to show that it was necessary for him to attend the family function.
"In view of the submission made and the facts and circumstances that he was earlier allowed to visit abroad and he has returned in accordance with the undertaking given before this court, it cannot be a ground for foreign visit and without any justifiable ground....

"There is nothing on record to show that it is so necessary for him to attend the family function, if any, in Hong Kong and if such permission would be granted to the accused persons, there would be no end for foreign visit without justifiable ground," the court said, adding that there was no merit in his plea.
Burman is facing prosecution in a complaint filed by Income Tax Department alleging that he was holding foreign bank accounts which he had not disclosed in his income tax returns and that there were undisclosed deposits in those two accounts.
Burman had sought permission to go to Hong Kong for five days from January 22 and said his other family members were also going there.

However, the Income Tax Department opposed it saying that he should not be allowed to travel abroad as a "pleasure treat" in routine course.

The court had earlier allowed Burman twice to go abroad including a trip to London to attend his ailing brother there.
The court, in its today's order, said it was not clear from Burman's application that there was any family function at Hong Kong though during the arguments it was submitted that there was death anniversary of his elder brother.
But nothing was placed on record to show that the death anniversary ceremony was being held at Hong Kong, it said.