Himachal Police seek arrest in multi-crore scam

The Himachal Pradesh Police on Monday moved a Sessions Court in Sirmaur district to declare the Managing Director of a company believed to be hiding in Dubai a proclaimed offender for alleged embezzlement running into thousands of crores of rupees.

The police want to arrest Indian Technomac Co Ltd Chairman and Managing Director Rakesh Kumar Sharma, who is said to be in Dubai.

Superintendent of Police Sandeep Dhawal told that Interpol's help was sought to arrest Sharma, who was jailed in 2014 for two years in Dubai after a cheque issued by him bounced.

"His last travel details were in Dubai and he is using a mobile phone of Dubai origin. His Indian passport has been revoked," he said.

Admitting the State's plea, Additional Sessions Judge Jaswant Singh initiated proceedings to declare him a proclaimed offender. It will take 15-20 days to complete the formalities, Dhawal added.

A total of 19 people, including six officials of the Excise and Taxation Department, have been arrested.

Company Director Vinay Kumar, son of former bureaucrat M.L. Sharma, who was Deputy Commissioner in Sirmaur where the company was located, was named in the chargesheet.

The financial embezzlement allegedly involving over Rs 5,000 crore is one of the biggest scams in the state. The case is being investigated by different investigating agencies for the past five years.

The company closed the manufacturing operations in March 2014 and its officials disappeared.

While the Excise and Taxation Department had suffered tax evasion of Rs 2,175 crore, banks were defaulted to the tune of Rs 2,167 crore and the Income Tax Department is owed Rs 750 crore.

Investigations say 21 companies were constituted by the company from 2009 to 2013 and the modus operandi was siphoning off bank loans.

The fraud came to light in 2014 when the Excise and Taxation Department found a mismatch in the return filed by the company and its VAT declarations.

A case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act was registered against the company officials in 2016.

The company based in Paonta Sahib was manufacturing steel and raw materials, ferro alloys and steel ingots, and it had become liable to pay tax from January 2008.

( With inputs from IANS )