I-T unearths unreported foreign bank accounts, properties worth USD 100M

During the search operation, several incriminating documents, diaries, emails and other digital evidence of a large number of unreported foreign bank accounts and immovable properties, were collected

The Income Tax department has found a number of unreported foreign bank accounts and immovable properties during recent search and seizures at various business groups in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, the department said.

HT Image

The credits in the bank accounts of these groups and some connected individuals exceed 100 million US dollars and are parked in bank accounts in Switzerland, UAE, Malaysia and some other countries, I-T department has said in a release on Monday.

The department said it carried out search and seizure operation on September 30 on 37 premises spread across multiple cities including Mumbai, Pune, Noida and Bengaluru. These groups and individuals were in varied businesses such as cable manufacturing, real estate, textile, printing machineries, hotels, logistics etc.

During the search operation, several incriminating documents, diaries, emails and other digital evidence of a large number of unreported foreign bank accounts and immovable properties, were collected, it said.

“These groups and individuals utilised the services of a Dubai based financial service provider to create a dubious and complex web of foreign companies and trusts based in tax havens such as Mauritius, United Arab Emirates (UAE), British Virgin Islands (BVI), Gibraltar etc. to hold their unaccounted assets,” I-T department stated.

Collected evidence also revealed undisclosed funds parked abroad have been used by these groups for acquiring immovable properties in several foreign countries such as the UK, Portugal, UAE etc in the name of defunct companies incorporated abroad, with funds layered through foreign bank accounts, for meeting personal expenses of the promoters and their family members abroad and routing back in their Indian entities, I-T department said.

The searches also led to collection of evidence related to bogus payments to suppliers for generating cash, unaccounted cash expenditure, hawala transactions and over-invoicing.

The department has also seized unaccounted cash and jewellery to the tune of over ₹2 crore from the residential and business premises and more than 50 bank lockers have been kept under restraint after the searches.