Vodafone has “under protest” paid a RS 3,900 crore (US$818m) tax bill in India related to its Hutch-Essar acquisition, the Economic Times of India reports. The newspaper says the payment was confirmed by Mumbai tax authorities.
The article states…
Vodafone has “under protest” paid a RS 3,900 crore (US$818m) tax bill in India related to its Hutch-Essar acquisition, the Economic Times of India reports. The newspaper says the payment was confirmed by Mumbai tax authorities.
The article states that the payment relates to the full takeover of Hutch-Essar earlier in 2011, by acquiring the 33% stake held by Essar. Vodafone paid US$5.4m for the stake.
Vodafone plans to appeal against the tax payment, the Economic Times explains, but paying “under protest” means that the company will not have to pay additional interest for a delayed payment, in case an appeal would be unsuccessful.
Vodafone has contested earlier tax demands related to Hutch Essar after the 2007 acquisition of a 67% in the company from Hutchison Whampoa.
In September 2010, the Bombay High Court ruled that the authorities were allowed to levy a US$2.5bn capital gains tax bill from Vodafone International relating to the 2007 deal. The case is currently with the Supreme Court awaiting a decision.
