BHUBANESWAR: The Income Tax (I-T) department on Tuesday said it had carried out searches and seizures related to a group involved in the manufacturing and trading of steel products in Rourkela and its surrounding areas that led to the detection of Rs 170 crore in black money.
The I-T department said the raid carried out on December 3 revealed that the said Rourkela-based group entities were booking bogus purchases of around Rs 170 crore for two financial years in the name of 17 bogus entities whose proprietors or directors are daily labourers from economically weaker sections.
All the 17 parties have confessed in the statements recorded during the course of search and seizure operation that they were unaware of any such business concerns in their name, stated the I-T department in its statement specifying the proprietors or directors of the bogus entities are daily-wage labourers.
The I-T department has also said they have observed that the total amount was withdrawn in cash from the bank accounts of the 17 bogus entities. Sources said the seizure and search operations in Rourkela were conducted based on reliable information and the investigation is on in the particular case.
Official sources said the group’s name and its primary proprietor, who had done the transactions for two consecutive financial years resulting in Rs 170 crore worth of black money transaction in cash could not be revealed since the investigation is still on. Names will be revealed after the closing of the case, sources added.