Taxmen grill Gujarat realtor who declared Rs 13,860 crore; family gets security
Gujarat businessman Mahesh Shah who declared unaccounted for income of Rs 13,860 crore before going “missing” and then surfacing on TV on Saturday faced questions from taxmen through the night before being allowed to leave for a day.
Gujarat businessman Mahesh Shah who declared unaccounted for income of Rs 13,860 crore before going “missing” and then surfacing on TV on Saturday faced questions from taxmen through the night before being allowed to leave for a day.
“He was allowed to leave the office after 10am on Sunday. He was asked to come at 11.30am on Monday,” said an official, declining to share details of Shah’s questioning. “Shah, 67, a heart patient, was allowed to take a nap for a while in between,” added the official, who did not want to be named, as he is not authorised to speak to the media.
Read: ‘Missing’ Gujarat realtor surfaces, says declared income of Rs 13,860 cr not his
Police, meanwhile, provided security cover for Shah’s family. Appearing on Gujarati ETV channel on Saturday, Shah had said he feared for himself and his family’s security, while claiming he was just a face for the unaccounted money and it belonged to others.
The Ahmedabad-based realtor was picked up from the TV studio by police in the presence of I-T department officials.
The realtor, whose business interests are mostly in Mumbai, was “missing” after he defaulted on the first tax instalment of over Rs 1,500 crore on the amount he had disclosed. He was supposed to pay the instalment by November 30 as a part of the amnesty called the income declaration scheme (IDS).
Shah had claimed on TV he declared the amount under the IDS on behalf of people staying in different parts of the country. “Kuch Hindustanio ka paisa hai (the money belongs to some Indians).”
Shah also said he was offered a commission for making the declaration, but the actual owners of the money backed out before the first instalment was to be paid. The I-T department has cancelled his IDS claim.
Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Arvind Kejriwal News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.