Hours after conducting search and seizure operations on former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav three aides, the Income Tax Department said it has unearthed undisclosed income, bogus loans and investments in Benami properties – all amounting to hundreds of crores of rupees.
The search action covered more than 30 premises spread over various locations including Lucknow, Mainpuri, Mau, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and NCR. A large number of incriminating pieces of evidence including hard copy documents and digital data have been found and seized during the search. Preliminary analysis of the same has revealed the following modus-operandi of tax evasion
It was found that several entities, engaged in the business of civil construction, were involved in the claiming of bogus expenditure running into crores of rupees.
While the department did not name the people targeted by the raids, Sources, however, confirmed that close aides of Yadav had come under the department’s scanner.
According to a report, IT department had raided the premises of secretary and national spokesperson Rajeev Rai of the Samajwadi Party, RCL group promotor Manoj Yadav and Jainendra Yadav, a house staff turned OSD of Akhilesh Yadav, in suspected tax evasion cases.
“In the case of one company, the undisclosed income of over Rs 86 crore of the directors of the company has been detected. Out of it, the person concerned has admitted a sum of Rs 68 crore as his undisclosed income and offered to pay tax thereon,” it said.
The tax department also said that another entity had used a “conduit of shell companies” to route its unexplained income and investments, of which Rs 12 crore had been identified.
“In the case of another person, unexplained investment of Rs 11 crore in a shell company and investments in Benami properties worth Rs 3.5 crore have been identified,” it added.
Further, a Kolkata-based accommodation entry provider was also covered in connection with providing accommodation entries to these persons. It was found that the entry operator formed various shell companies to provide accommodation entries of bogus share capital to the tune of Rs. 408 crore and bogus unsecured loan of Rs. 154 crore through these shell companies.
