Key Highlights
- Subscribe now New Delhi: Mining and metals conglomerate Vedanta Ltd, through its promoter entity Vedanta Holdings Mauritius II Ltd (VHML), has moved the Delhi high court challenging the income tax department's claim that the group gained undue tax advantage of about ₹1,308 crore through the misuse of the India–Mauritius tax treaty.
- The tax department’s general anti-avoidance rules (GAAR) approving panel had, on 28 November, also allowed imposing a tax liability of ₹138 crore on the group.
- The writ petition was heard on Thursday (4 December) by a division bench led by Justice Prathiba M.
- Singh, which restrained the tax department from taking coercive action or issuing an assessment order until the next hearing on 18 December.
- According to court filings reviewed by Mint, Vedanta challenged the order of the GAAR approving panel that classified its Mauritius-based holding structure as an “impermissible avoidance arrangement." The panel concluded that the group secured treaty benefits by routing promoter shareholding through Mauritius to access the 5% dividend withholding tax rate under the India–Mauritius double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA), instead of the applicable 10–15%.
