Software services major Infosys on Tuesday admitted that it has appealed against a corporation tax assessment by the UK authorities as British media reports referenced the company’s annual report to reveal the dispute.
Reports here are flagging that the firm co-founded by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s father-in-law, Narayana Murthy, was contesting a GBP 20 million tax bill with His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) department.
The dispute, first revealed by 'The Times', comes at a sensitive time for Sunak who sacked his Conservartive Party chief, Nadhim Zahawi, after an investigation found he had breached the ministerial code of ethics over his tax affairs.
"Infosys provides details of certain ongoing disputes with various regulatory authorities, including this specific tax matter with HMRC," an Infosys spokesperson told 'The Times'.
“The company has filed an appeal against a tax assessment in the UK and obtained a stay on the payment of the tax demand from HMRC,” the spokesperson said. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Infosys, the newspaper highlights.
Murthy quit Infosys in 2014 and is not involved with its operations. His daughter and Sunak’s wife, Akshata Murty, owns just over 0.9 percent of the Bengaluru-based company – a stake estimated by ‘The Sunday Times’ to be worth GBP 730 million.
Murty found her personal wealth under the spotlight in April last year when it emerged that she legally held non-domiciled tax status as an Indian citizen, which meant she did not have to pay tax on earnings from abroad, including from Infosys dividends.
She has since denounced her non-dom tax status saying it was not “compatible” with her husband’s job – who was then the chancellor of the country.
