I-T Dept seizes Rs 30 crore in cash from a private vault in Delhi

Mangalore Today News Network

Delhi, Dec 06, 2018 : The Income Tax department has seized Rs 5.4 crore in cash from five lockers in Delhi’s Chandni Chowk on Wednesday, 5 December, news agency ANI reported.

 

On Monday, 3 December, the I-T dept seized over Rs 25 crore cash after surveying a 300-safes strong private vault in the market area of Chandni Chowk.

With the fresh raids by I-T on Wednesday, the total amount of cash seized now stands at Rs 30.4 crore. 175 lockers are yet to be opened, ANI quoted officials as saying.

The taxmen opened lockers under scanner for alleged tax evasion, and the facility was under the radar of I-T since Diwali, news agency PTI reported.

The vault, sources said, is run by a businessman based in old Delhi and had an RBI approval to run the private facility.

The vault has about 300 lockers and traders from the ’Khaari Bawli’, Chandni Chowk and ’Naya Baazaar’ area had their cash and jewellery deposited in these vaults.

The department has suspicion of tax evasion and stashing of unaccounted for cash and jewellery in over 100 lockers of the private vault facility and they are being opened one by one, they said.

    The survey action was launched over allegations of tax evasion by certain people who are reported to have kept their illegal stash in private vaults.

"However, the case is still under investigation and more vaults are to be examined," a senior I-T Department officer told PTI.

A trader involved in the running of the private vault facility told the media that it was approved by the RBI in 1992 and he denied any wrongdoing or illegal business being done to evade income tax.