Jet has no relationship with Hawala: Palanimanickam

Nov 24:  The Minister of State for Finance, S S Palanimanickam informed in a written statement to lower house of the parliament that Jet has not received any sort of payment through unfair means.

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“All the remittance has been done through normal banking channels”, said Palanimanickam on the basis of investigation report submitted by the Income Tax department.

The finance ministry has given a clean chit to Naresh Goyal, the Chairman of Jet airways from alleged Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violation as per income tax investigations reports. “Investigation carried out by the Income Tax Department has not revealed any remittance received by Jet Airways other than through the banking channels," said Palanimanickam.

The Directorate of Enforcement is probing Naresh Goyal for not following the regulations of FEMA and alleged him to indulge in illegal remittance received by a fugitive. A case had also been filed in the United States against the promoter of the Jet Airways Naresh Goyal for using an alleged fugitive from law in receiving remittance via Hawala route for inputting money to carry out the Initial Public Offering, IPO of the Jet Airline.

Though Naresh Goyal has incessantly denied any sort of involvement in unfair means of receiving remittance and Income Tax Department has also given clean chit to Jet after conducting long investigation and not finding him in any financial irregularities.

A Public Interest Litigation, PIL plea was also filed in the Bombay high court probing him for having nexus with the underworld dawn Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Shakil, but court had rejected the plea and ordered the CBI enquiry. The case is now under trial in Apex Court.

Department of Company Affairs has also probed Jet Airways in 9 cases under violating the sections 205, 224, 211 and 292 and the inquiry is still going on. The initial probe begins when Jet airways ask for US licence.

The allegation against Jet and Chairman evolved in 2005 when Naresh Goyal was preparing to introduce IPO in the Indian stock Market. Several Indian financial controlling organisations include Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Directorate of Enforcement and the Reserve Bank of India are conducting investigations against Jet on alleged legality, status of ownership rights, sources of funding and illegal receiving remittances.