My 2,000 workers exchanged Rs 1.2-cr old notes for me: Ludhiana auto dealer to tax sleuths
A day after the income tax department raided an auto-parts dealer and seized Rs 1.2 crore in cash, including Rs 72 lakh in the new notes of Rs 2,000, investigators said he had pressed his workforce of around 2,000 persons who queued up with his old notes at various banks and got him the new notes over the last few days ever since the old notes of Rs 500 and 1,000 were demonetised on November 8.
A day after the income tax sleuths seized Rs 1.20 crore cash, including Rs 72 lakh in new 2,000-rupee notes, from an auto parts dealer in Ludhiana, investigations have revealed that he collected the money by fanning out his workers, numbering around 2,000, to exchange old currency notes from banks.
The dealer, identified as S Bajaj, allegedly converted around Rs 1.2 crore of unaccounted banned currency since November 8.
The I-T department on a tip-off raided the commercial and residential premises of Bajaj Sons at Focal Point and Gurdev Nagar, respectively, late Friday evening.
The director of the firm has reportedly disclosed to the I-T sleuths that he employed more than 2,000 workers who he instructed to exchange the scrapped currency notes (Rs 500 and 1,000 ) from banks. The workers fanned out across the district and did what they were instructed to do.
However, the I-T sleuths are not buying Bajaj’s theory and are investigating whether the illegal transactions could have been carried out without the connivance of bank officials.
A senior I-T official who was part of the raids shared that apart from conducting regular search operations, identifying people who facilitated the transactions is their priority. He also said probing the role of some banks officials is under consideration.
