Centre notifies rules to settle Vodafone retrospective tax case

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has notified a separate rule to settle the long-drawn retrospective tax dispute with Vodafone Plc.

According to it, the British telecom giant is required to give a declaration to the Income-Tax (I-T) Department, withdrawing all legal proceedings against the Central government over the levy of retrospective taxes, besides the indemnity it has to give against any claims and commit not to seek any damages.

The new rule is in line with the basic structure notified on October 1 for settling retrospective taxation cases that arose due to the controversial 2012 amendment to the I-T Act.

The rule will facilitate the resolution of the Vodafone case, which is different from the cases of Cairn and others.