Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Live
Awaiting trial since 2011, stud farm owner Hasan Ali Khan dies
PUNE: Businessman and stud farm owner Hasan Ali Khan, who was accused of stashing a huge chunk of black money in foreign accounts, died at the age of 71 in Hyderabad on Thursday night. Khan was owner of some pedigree horses and traded in thoroughbreds in partnership.
He came to limelight in 2006 when the Income Tax (I-T) department and Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided his residence in Koregaon Park after they allegedly tracked foreign money transactions running into thousands of crores of rupees. The investigators tracked transactions worth ₹5,000 crore in a multinational bank located on MG Road.
In the same month, Khan was admitted to Jehangir Nursing Home for three weeks. His links were traced to Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Surat and Vadodara at that time.
During the raids, the agencies recovered some horses, a flat and ₹70 lakh cash. However, during simultaneous raids in Mumbai and Gujarat, the ED seized incriminatory evidence which yielded information about his dubious deals.
The search by central agencies revealed that he had obtained a Permanent Account Number only in 2005 and had failed to pay tax for the years 2001 to 2007. In 2008, after the investigation, the I-T department alleged his total income for seven years between 2001-02 and 2007-08 was ₹ 1.10 lakh crore. Khan filed all returns in May 2007. The ED filed chargesheet against him in May 2011.
According to ED, Khan had at least three accounts in UBS, Zurich, two in his own name and one in his wife Rheema’s name.
Meanwhile, advocate Prashant Patil, who represented Khan, said, “The special PMLA court also framed charges last year and was trying to expedite the matter. But, as expected, the ED never got any witness or evidence before the court. If this is a case of money laundering, then where is the money? Have all the agencies who have investigated the said case from 2007 till date found any evidence against Khan?”
Patil said he will request the court not to drop the criminal proceedings even after his death as the dead man’s soul deserves justice.