E-Paper
IT raids on Assam coal traders at 21 places reveal tax fraud of over ₹150 cr
The main allegation against the coal traders was that they had routed accommodation entries of more than ₹85 crore in the form of non-genuine share capital and unsecured loans through certain Kolkata-based shell companies by suppression of true net profit.
Multiple raids leading coal traders by the Income Tax (IT) department across 21 locations in Assam and Delhi have revealed tax fraud of over ₹150 crore.
The IT department started the raids on Friday at Guwahati, Digboi and Margherita in Assam and also at several places in Delhi, the government said in a statement on Monday.
The main allegation against the coal traders was that they had routed accommodation entries of more than ₹85 crore in the form of non-genuine share capital and unsecured loans through certain Kolkata-based shell companies. All this was done by suppression of true net profit.
“It has been established that the group engages in out of book transactions. Handwritten documents/diaries regarding cash transactions have been recovered which are not reflected in the regular books of accounts,” the statement said.
“Such transactions detected so far across all the locations combined are upwards of ₹150 crore, of which payments made of a total of more than ₹100 crore have been found to be violative of various sections of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Such seized documents are voluminous and are being investigated further,” it added.
Loan transactions made in cash by the coal traders were found to be more than ₹10 crore. Stock difference of ₹7 crore was found and no cogent explanation regarding the same was provided by the traders.
“In the Kolkata-based shell company acquired by one of the traders, no book of accounts and other essential documents were found, proving the same to be a bogus company used only to route unaccounted income of the group,” the statement said.
Unexplained cash of approximately ₹3.53 crore has also been found during the raids. Cash investments in share capital during the demonetization period were also found.
Further investigations are on.
