The AT affirmed the adjudicating authority's findings that the...

The AT affirmed the adjudicating authority's findings that the appellant and co-actors contravened sections 3(b) and 3(c) of FEMA, 1999 by effecting and facilitating unauthorized outward remittances and inward receipts through informal channels (hawala) without RBI/authorized banking route. The Tribunal held the investigation and contemporaneous material, including admissions, mobile/SMS records and corroborative statements, establish deliberate under-invoicing, cash payments in India and onward foreign transfers aggregating the amounts alleged, rejecting the retraction as unavailing. The AT declined to interfere with the impugned order, thereby upholding the authority's determination of illegal foreign exchange transactions and liability under the FEMA provisions.