Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax sleuths continued nationwide crackdown on Friday in connection with demonetisation. In two separate crackdowns in Delhi and Chennai, the I-T sleuths seized more than Rs 200 crore and unearthed well-knit rackets in converting the scrapped currency notes.
While the I-T department unearthed Rs 100 cr of suspected deposits in 44 accounts of Axis Bank branches in Delhi, the department seized Rs 106 crore cash and 127 kg gold bars in searches in multiple locations in Chennai.
On Wednesday, the ED had arrested one Rajeev Singh Kushwaha, a Chartered Accountant, for floating shell companies and laundering more than Rs 39 crore by opening benami bank accounts in Axis Bank’s Kashmere Gate and Chandni Chowk branches. Between November 10 and November 22, in connivance with Axis Bank managers Shobit Sinha and Vinit Gupta, Kushwaha deposited money in several shell companies and benami accounts. The Chartered Accountant was charging 10 to 20 per cent commission for converting the scrapped currency notes, said ED officials. Axis Bank has already suspended 19 staffers after the frauds were detected.
“The department is checking the records of the bank as part of a survey operation. There are some instances under the scanner where huge deposits have been made post the currency scrap and that is being probed,” officials said.
Axis Bank said it is cooperating with the agency. “The bank is committed to following the highest standards of corporate governance and has zero tolerance towards any deviation on the part of any of its employees from the set model code of conduct. Strict action will be taken against any employee found deviating from the guidelines. We would also like to add that we are cooperating with the investigating agencies,” it said in a statement.
They added the taxman was probing some accounts which were dubious as they were opened by allegedly using fake Know Your Customer (KYC) documents and it was suspected some entry operators used the accounts to deposit funds.
Meanwhile in Chennai, the IT sleuths raided offices and residences of those engaged in the lucrative sand mining business. Prominent among those whose houses were raided include Sekhar Reddy, who is also a member of the Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthnam Trust Board.
The raids yielded Rs 106 crore cash and 127 kg gold bars. The seized cash include new currencies worth Rs 10 crore. According to sources, the raids were in connection with tax evasion following the demonetisation of high value currency notes announced by the Centre on November 8.
An officer in the group said 127 kg gold in 1 kg bars and Rs 96 crore in old currency and Rs 10 crore in Rs 2,000 notes has been seized. This is the largest seizure of new currency notes after the demonetisation, said the I-T officials.
“We are surprised how these people managed to get Rs 10 crore in new currencies while the common man is struggling to get cash either from ATM or bank branches,” said the IT official. The official said there may be some kind of deal between these businessmen and bank officials. “Probe is on to find out how they managed to mobilise this much brand new currencies,” he said.
In one of the locations, the IT officials summoned the services of note counting machines to count the bundle of notes seized. “The quantity of notes seized was so huge and hence we sought seven currency counting machines,” said the official.
The officials said they suspect that all those who were raided had currency conversion dealings and some bank staff too have been brought under the scanner.
In Gujarat, the police seized Rs. 1 crore cash in newly introduced Rs 2000 notes on Friday from Surat. The police have arrested four persons, including a woman, in connection with the handling of cash for possessing 38 bundles of Rs 2,000 notes totaling Rs 76 lakh from a SUV car bearing a Maharashtra registration number from the industrial estate of Sachin in Surat.
In a similar case of handling large amount of cash, the police arrested two persons for possessing 90 bundles of Rs 100 currency notes worth Rs 9 lakh from Patan district of north Gujarat. Earlier, Rs 25 lakh worth of currency was seized by the police from a car in Ranavav area of Porbandar city in which two persons were travelling. The currency was in Rs 2,000 and Rs 100 denomination.