Kanpur, January 22: The Kanpur Police is in a dilemma as to where it can keep seized demonetised notes worth Rs 100 crore. The notes were in the denomination of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 stacked at the residence of local businessman Anand Khatri, who would exchange it with the new notes. The police has arrested 16 people in connection with the case including businessmen and middlemen from Hyderabad, Kolkata and Varanasi.
It was on the night of January 16 that the Kanpur Police raided a residence where they found old currency notes in trunks, sacks, and cartons. The police were assisted by a team from the National Investigation Agency and the Reserve Bank of India.
The counting of the demonetised notes seized finished on January 17 morning and it was found to be worth Rs 96.62 crore in old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes which have been declared illegal by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November 2016. The police had to arrange five trunks of 4×6 feet to take away the money. The counting of the old currency notes lasted 12 hours and the police had to use 37 machines and 80 men for the task.
Currently, the seized notes are being kept in a guarded room of the Kanpur Police Lines, the Hindustan Times reported.
Khatri may also have to pay Rs 483 crore as a fine after demonetised notes were seized from his residence in Swaroop Nagar locality. A case has been registered against Khatri under sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, 2017, for keeping demonetised notes over the permitted limit in his possession.
“Keeping the demonetised notes is punishable by a fine, which may extend to five times the amount recovered,” said Vivek Khanna, former chairman, Central India Regional Council of Chartered Accountants. And in Khatri’s case, this would amount to nearly Rs 483.1 crore if the police choose to enforce the penal provisions and he is found guilty.