CBI Director Ranjit Sinha has written a letter to Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Chairman RK Tewari asking him to hand over evidence, if any, against any former CBI officials who are alleged to have links with meat exporter Moin Akhtar Qureshi who is being probed for suspected tax evasion. With Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi promising action in this case during the course of his lok Sabha campaign, the Income Tax (I-T) department has prepared a detailed report which will be submitted when the new Government takes over, official sources said.
A Doon school alumnus, 57-year-old Qureshi has been under I-T department lens for several months now for alleged tax evasion as the tax sleuths claimed that the turnover of his companies was ‘under-reported’. The I-T department claimed to have 500 hours of telephonic transcripts of Qureshi even as reports surfaced about alleged links of former CBI Director AP Singh with the meat exporter.
The tax sleuths had roped in Enforcement Directorate as well to probe alleged money laundering in the case by Qureshi, who had to resign as president of its old boys’ society of Doon school recently after the controversy broke out. When contacted, Singh, who is at present a member of UPSC, said, “Qureshi is a personal friend. He is neither a wanted fugitive nor an accused. His tax evasion allegations can be better answered by him.”
Sinha wrote a ‘secret’ letter to the CBDT Chairman asking him to provide evidence, if any, against any CBI officer, present or former, so that the same could be analysed and action taken in accordance with the law, official sources said. CBDT has the administrative control over Income Tax department.
The letter was received from the CBI recently as the I-T department was preparing a detailed presentation of the case to be put forward before the new Government, they said. Without mentioning any name, the CBI Director assured that proper action would be initiated against guilty officers, the sources said. The reports indicated that the former CBI Director had introduced Qureshi in elite social circles of the national Capital.
In a series of searches being conducted by the I-T department at various premises being linked to Qureshi, the tax sleuths have claimed to have frozen Rs 20 crore cash and jewellery so far and the deposits in bank accounts. A final report was also being prepared in which the I-T assessment is reported to have included a mention of his posh bungalow in South Delhi.