IT department conducts search-and-seizure operation on 2 clusters based in West Bengal

The search operation covered more than 30 premises spread across West Bengal.

During the operation, a large number of incriminating evidence in the form of documents and digital data stored in SD cards, WhatsApp chats etc. were found and seized, a statement from the IT department said.

The search team has found that the SD card was used to hold details of parallel sets of unaccounted sales, excel sheets of actual production data, files of parallel matching accounts, cash payment details made to different parties, etc., the statement said. has gone.

Preliminary analysis of the SD cards and related evidence seized by the IT department has revealed that they contain unaccounted cash operated by the directors and key employees of the owners of the entities.

Prominent persons in one of the groups have admitted that the unaccounted income of more than Rs. 66 crores has been generated through unaccounted cash sales from its manufacturing units during the financial year 20-21. The department said that in some other entities, pieces of evidence relating to claims of baseless purchases have been found, of which the purchase of Rs. 20 crore has also been accepted by the directors as undisclosed income.

Furthermore, another group’s analysis of confiscated evidence shows that several paper companies, run by entry operators, have been used to provide housing entries to its prime concerns.

The department said that these shell entities have repatriated the unaccounted funds of the group in the guise of share capital/unsecured loans back into the books of account of these entities.

With the acceptance by the directors of these respective entities, it is confirmed that, the quantum of such routing is high 40 crores.

The searches have revealed various methods of tax evasion adopted by the groups such as unaccounted cash sales, inflation of expenses through fraudulent purchase claims and route of unaccounted income through housing entries. This has resulted in the seizure of unaccounted cash and jewelery worth over Rs 2 crore and the total unaccounted income so far detected exceeding Rs. 125 crores.

Further investigation is on.