PIL against NSEL withdrawn as CBI tells HC case has been filed

The Bombay High Court today allowed withdrawal of a PIL seeking a CBI probe into the alleged Rs 5,500 Crore scam after the investigating agency informed that its Banking Securities and Fraud cell had filed a case against National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL) and its promoters.
The CBI was replying to a PIL seeking transfer of probe from Mumbai Police to CBI into the multi-crore scam.
A bench headed by Justice P V Hardas then allowed the Petitioner Ketan Tirodkar to withdraw the PIL as his request for a CBI probe had been considered.
The PIL argued that since the scam has national and international ramifications, only CBI had the necessary jurisdiction to probe this matter.

He said the NSEL case pertains to alleged financial embezzlements by Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX) and Financial Technologies India Ltd (FTIL)--both promoted by Jignesh Shah.
The petition alleged that those arrested so far like Nilesh Patel, a major borrower, and three employees of NSEL, including Anjani Sinha, were mere pawns in the game while concerted efforts were made to project Shah, the alleged mastermind in the fraud as a "victim".

"This attempt to project the mastermind of the scam as a victim of conspiracy by his employees and borrowers is an outcome of the pressure of vested interests in the corridors of power who have been benefited by the NSEL-MCX-FTIL triangular operations," according to the PIL.

During the market stint of MCX, NSEL and FTIL, Shah launched many international platforms (bourses and trading companies) in tax-havens, namely Mauritius, Botswana in Africa, Singapore and in Middle-East nations such as Dubai and Bahrain, to take advantage of the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) signed by India as a member of a consortium of multiple nations, the PIL alleged.
"These platforms were in form of bourses facilitating trading in futures for various commodities. The revenue from these bourses was transferred to India without inviting any tax liability and also revenue from Indian entities was syphoned off to these countries in the guise of payment schedules to be honoured," the PIL further alleged.

In reality, there were no payment schedules honoured and it was a financial market gimmick to avoid paying taxes in India, the PIL contended.