Sanofi seeks French govt aid on Indian acquistion tax

Drugmaker Sanofi Aventis told CNBC-TV18 that it has asked the French government to intercede with the Indian tax department on its behalf. The pharma giant argues that tax for the acquisition of Shantha Biotech was paid in France under French law, since the actual deal saw Sanofi's vaccine-unit buying another French firm, ShanH.

And it was ShanH that originally held a majority stake in Shantha Biotech.
Sanofi further says that paying tax in India would mean double taxation, and will go against the India-France tax treaty.  Sanofi also said that it was reviewing the recent amendments to the Indian Income Tax Act.
Sanofi says it will confirm litigation after with discussions with the Indian income tax department over the Shantha Biotech acquisition. The pharma giant says that potential disbursements will have no financial impact for the group.