The Income Tax Department has carried out searches against a prominent coal trader of West Bengal, resulting in the seizure of documents indicating that the group companies allegedly held bogus investments to the tune of ₹150 crore in unquoted equity shares of paper entities.
The searches, conducted in Raniganj, Asansol, Purulia and Kolkata on Thursday, were based on the intelligence about large scale unaccounted cash being generated and used for various purposes, the agency said in a statement. Unaccounted cash and bullion of around ₹7.3 crore were seized.
The agency said that of the total amount, investments of about ₹145 crore had already been sold. These were found to be sham transactions, as purportedly admitted by the assessee in the statement recorded during the search.
The department said: “The searches have also led to seizure of a substantial number of incriminating documents showing cash generation in coal and sand trading, sponge iron sales, etc. Documents have also been seized indicating huge unaccounted expenses for facilitation of coal transport and various trading activities.”
