Pushed for a reason why, Ecclestone said: “Very political.”
Force India co-owner Vijay Mallya, however, sees no reason why his home
country will not be in a position to stage the race next season and again in
2015, which is the final year of their current deal.
“I’ve no concerns,” Mallya said.
“The promoters are fine with it, the fans, drivers and teams love it,
it’s a lovely circuit.
“Yes, there is an issue with the Indian tax authorities.
“They say ‘If you make x amount of revenue from 19 races in a Formula
One season, with one of those in India, then logically
one-nineteenth of the income should be taxed in India’.
“You just have to argue it out, but it’s unnecessary.
“On the one hand the government are saying they want India to be a
vibrant, modern, global economy, and they want global investment and global
sport, blah blah blah.
“And then the taxman puts a dampener on things and creates uncertainty
for the future.
“It has to be battled out across the table. It’s frustrating, but I
think there can be a good outcome.”
Asked specifically about the rumours surrounding the promoters’ financial
woes, Mallya added: “They’ve already built the track. What are they
going to do with it?
“At the end of the day they’ve invested a huge sum of money to build
that track, and they’ve built a whole sports city around it, as you know.
“They are committed to it.”
(Edited by Nick Pearce)