The country’s income tax department has agreed not to start criminal proceedings or levy a penalty if the Indians repatriate the money from Geneva and pay the taxes, the official said. The official declined to name anyone on the list, the report said.

A number of countries, such as the UK, US and Germany are pursuing high net worth individuals who have stashed undisclosed money in offshore accounts in centres such as Switzerland.

The amnesty offer in India is being made to some people who were on a list of 700 citizens with HSBC accounts in Geneva that was given to the South Asian nation’s government by French authorities last year, the official said, without providing additional details. The government is still investigating other people on that list, the news service quoted the government official as saying.