The Government has authorised the Income Tax Department to initiate legal action in tax evasion cases where Indian investments are located in foreign countries. Official sources said in New Delhi that the Central Board of Direct Taxes has issued an order that the Income Tax department does not need any permission from higher authorities to initiate legal action in such cases.

Sources said the step has been taken in the backdrop of CBDT obtaining for the first time investment data of few Indians who had accounts in Germany's Leichestein bank recently.