Hyundai Motors India Ltd., the largest car exporter and the second largest car maker in the Indian market, said on Sunday that it will legally challenge the show-case notice served by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), regarding a possible tax evasion. The company has refuted all tax evasion charges imposed by DRI.
It is to be mentioned here that DRI had issued a legal notice to Indian unit of Korean car maker Hyundai for tax evasion of as much as Rs 266 crore during a period of last five years. The tax evasion charges largely attributed to the import of components by the firm for the production of its cars at its Sriperumbudur plant near Chennai.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the company said, "HMIL totally denies the allegations of resorting to mis-declaration of the value of components imported by it for the manufacture of passenger cars or having suppressed information of the same." The statement added that Hyundai imports all the components based on transaction value and the relevant duty has been paid to the appropriate authorities with full documentation. Therefore any allegation that HMIL is resorting to mis-declaration is false, baseless and unfounded, and would be challenged under the due process of law in the appropriate forum.
At present, Hyundai India exports cars to over 140 countries and has been performing considerably well since last 10 years. According to the company the total import value during last five years stood at approximately Rs 14,000 crore, and the disputed amount accounts for a mere 2 percent of it. The company also said that it has paid over Rs 26,800 crore in central and state taxes since the starting of its operations in the country.
