Pankaj Oswal told not to leave Australia by tax authorities

As per reports, the ATO raised the tax bill after Pankaj Oswal transferred his shares in Burrup Fertiliser, a company started by him, to his wife in 2007

Amid a takeover tussle with his mother for control of Oswal Greentech and Oswal Agro Mills, Pankaj Oswal has been ordered by authorities in Australia not to leave the country due to a taxation case involving millions of dollars.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has issued Pankaj Oswal and his wife with Departure Prohibition Orders (DPO) over Mrs Oswal's unpaid tax bill, according to reports.

When contacted, Oswal told PTI that he had gone to Australia voluntarily with his wife to settle an ongoing case.

"We are not in any custody or detention. The DPO only stops you from leaving the country, before we sort out the issues which we have ourselves very much come to do. This is just another show of bullying and muscle power," Oswal said.

Stating that he is yet to get the reason for the DPO, he said: "The issuance of DPO is merely a tactic to intimidate us."

"The matter with ATO relates to alleged claims of AU$190 million owned by Radhika Oswal. Let me state here that as part of pre-trial hearings, independent experts have given their testimony that the claim against Radhika cannot be for more than AU$32 million which itself is a contested amount that we believe to be zero," he added.

As per reports, the ATO raised the tax bill after Pankaj Oswal transferred his shares in Burrup Fertiliser, a company started by him, to his wife in 2007.

Pankaj Oswal, who is currently in Sydney, said the tax claim is for "alleged capital gain taxes".

"Radhika and I were living in Australia of a temporary resident visa and the issue of paying capital gain tax does not arise for non-residents. So we are not liable to pay capital gains tax," said Pankaj.

Earlier this month, a takeover battle had erupted in the Oswal family, which is estimated to have assets worth Rs 800 crore (Rs 8 billion), after the death of Abhey Oswal, with both Pankaj Oswal and his mother Aruna Oswal claiming ownership of the two group companies.

On Tuesday, Oswal Greentech and Oswal Agro Mills had informed that the shares of the companies' patriarch late Abhey Oswal have been transferred to wife Aruna Oswal.